First-year Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson likely wanted to make an impression during his introductory press conference after being hired away from the Detroit Lions.
And he likely knew exactly what he was doing when he name-dropped Matt LaFleur, the head coach of the division rival Green Bay Packers, during his first time meeting the Bears’ media.
“To be quite frank with you, I kind of enjoyed beating Matt LaFleur twice a year,” Johnson said.
Johnson’s remarks did what they were likely intended to — get more people talking about the Bears as a potential threat to win the NFC North.
And though it’s been more than two months since Johnson brought up LaFleur unprompted, while most fans may have forgotten about what was said, reporters certainly didn’t.
So when LaFleur spoke to the media at the annual NFL owners’ meetings this week, he was asked if he had any response to what his new divisional counterpart said about him back in January.
“It’s all good,” LaFleur said. “I’m sure he’s playing to the fans a little bit. It is what it is. I’m not going to lose too much sleep over that one.”
Despite Johnson’s comments, the Lions actually only swept the season series against the Packers twice in the six seasons Johnson was in Detroit, starting as an offensive quality control coach and working his way tup to tight ends coach, passing game coordinator, and ultimately offensive coordinator.
In fact, though LaFleur’s career record against the Lions is 6-6, he actually won his first five consecutive games against his NFC North rivals. He took over as the Packers head coach the same year Johnson started working for the Lions.
Johnson has his work cut out for him in his first season as a head coach. The Bears went just 5-12 in 2024 and fired both offensive coordinator Shane Waldron and head coach Matt Eberflus midseason after disappointing results.
The good news is that Johnson, an offensive guru, has one of the top young QBs in the league to mold and work with in Caleb Williams, along with a revamped offensive line that added center Drew Dalman and guard Joe Thuney, plus several talented skill-position players including running back D’Andre Swift, wide receivers D.J. Moore and Rome Odunze, and tight end Cole Kmet.
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