Day 17 of the Chicago Bears offseason. I made a soup with a bunch of stuff I had in the freezer (frozen pasta noodles), fridge (garlic, vegetables), and pantry (pasta sauce, broth, various seasonings) — and it turned out well. I might share the recipe on social media later if I remember to do so. Sharing is caring, after all.
P.S. – Sorry about the site not loading earlier.
- The Chicago Bears will introduce Ben Johnson as their new head coach at an 11 a.m. CT press conference at Halas Hall. Hooray! It’s here!
- Jeff Hughes (Da Bears Blog) has a bunch of notes on the Johnson hire and I would encourage you to give it a read. One of the most important bullet points (for me, at least) was this: “Johnson did have questions re: the structure of the organization, primarily Kevin Warren’s role in football operations. I’m told George McCaskey made it clear that football ops are not in Warren’s purview.” I’m glad that got cleared up by the top boss.
- NFL Network’s Kyle Brandt is one of my favorite media personalities because he is fun and doesn’t this football thing too seriously. Here’s what he had to say about the Bears’ hiring of Ben Johnson:
Thoughts on Ben Johnson and the Bears pic.twitter.com/3HWDIIXaVu— Kyle Brandt (@KyleBrandt) January 21, 2025
- It’s a 3-minute clip, so I won’t transcribe everything. However, I did love this quote: “They hired the most-wanted coach on his first stop with the idea that it would be his last stop. It isn’t just that the Bears chose Johnson, Johnson chose the Bears. He chose Caleb Williams. He chose to stay in the north. … He was getting wooed by Tom Brady and he chose George McCaskey. George McCaskey just won a beauty contest with Tom Brady. Scoreboard, look up at it. McCaskey 1, Brady 0.”
- Hang the banner!
- Sometimes, a really good headline is all you need to capture the spirit of the thing. For instance, the headline accompanying Jason Lieser’s latest at the Sun-Times hooks me in as a reader: “Blending from variety of influences, new Bears coach Ben Johnson looks to make team smarter, quicker, bolder.” Boom. If you’re not getting reeled in to read this based on the headline alone, then I don’t think you’re human.
Peter Schrager on Ben Johnson choosing the Bears:
On Ben Johnson CHOOSING the @ChicagoBears . pic.twitter.com/KFS7VOvtED— Peter Schrager (@PSchrags) January 21, 2025
- The money quote: “When it came down to it, he looked at two possibilities — the Raiders and the Bears. The Raiders? Clean slate, go and build the team. But with the Chicago Bears, there’s a comfort. And the comfort is I’ve got the guy. I’ve got the quarterback. And, obviously, Ben Johnson not only wanted the quarterback, but he wanted that logo and he wanted the ability to bring this franchise back into relevance.”
The Bears official website and the folks at Bears Wire have done a wonderful job curating what experts and insiders around the league have said about the Ben Johnson hire.
- On the other side of the coin, it doesn’t sound like Detroit Lions fans are taking the news well:
Did Ben Johnson just become public enemy #1 in Detroit by becoming the Bears new Head Coach? pic.twitter.com/NBfx0pHWVi
— Woodward Sports Network (@woodwardsports) January 21, 2025
- So, on the one hand, I wanna LOL till my face turns orange. And on the other hand, I like that the Bears and Lions have a budding rivalry. There is something about having an active and competitive rivalry that does so much to drive my interest as a fan. Don’t get it twisted. I’m always locked in. But when you can spice it up, then I really get amped.
- Former Bears running back David Montgomery had the best reaction to the news of his former OC leaving to join his former team:
Safe to say we know how David Montgomery is feeling about Ben Johnson leaving 🤣 pic.twitter.com/WAhpCmd6sV
— B/R Gridiron (@brgridiron) January 21, 2025
- Do I realize that folks care very little for what Mike Martz has to say? Yes. But do I also realize that Martz’s résumé and credentials are worth hearing him out? Also, yes. Here is what the former Bears offensive play caller has to say about the hire:
“I think he’s a once-in-a-generation kind of coach. They just don’t come around very often like him. They got this one right. I’m just over the moon on this one. It’s great to see Chicago have something exciting happen to them like this.”
- Mike Martz often comes off as a curmudgeon who yells at clouds. So to hear him say that the Bears got this one right blows my mind.
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