Bears Players Already Admitting They Weren't Ready For Ben Johnson

The Chicago Bears realized an uncomfortable truth about what happened last season. While various circumstances played their part in the team going 5-12, the cold truth is many of their players didn't embrace the work necessary to win close games. Those are almost always won by teams who avoid mistakes. Every time the Bears seemed to have a chance to win, they were the ones committing a penalty, turnover, busting a coverage, or missing an open receiver. Some team leaders admitted that a core problem came from how they practiced. Too many guys weren't embracing the work necessary. It's why Matt Eberflus and his staff were fired. Could Ben Johnson change that?

A better way to say it is whether players are ready for what he's demanding. The Bears haven't even reached training camp yet, and they're already realizing Johnson is a different animal from his predecessor. His intensity and drive are palpable. Nothing stands out more than his maniacal obsession with details. Cole Kmet mentioned it multiple times in his recent presser.

“It’s an obsession with the details and he just can’t let it go...It’s every day, and it’s relentless. He’s definitely thrown a lot at us in this short time here in the spring, but I think he wants to challenge us as a group to see what we can handle. I think we’ve done a pretty good job so far. There’s definitely been some ups and downs, but I think that’s kind of the method to the madness so far.”

He wasn't alone in that assessment.

D.J. Moore has had several different head coaches in his career. He thought he understood how different they could be, but nothing had prepared him for Johnson.

“I don’t think it gets on your nerves. It’s more like, dang, you got to look at deep down in yourself and be like, ‘Did I really mess up? Did I execute the play at the highest level that I can? Was I slacking or was it perfect?’ So, that’s what he wants — perfection.”

Ben Johnson isn't interested in fixing the team culture.

He's interested in winning. That is a lesson he understands well. Fixing a culture can't happen unless you win games. Eberflus failed to understand that reality. It's not a coincidence Lovie Smith had the best culture of any Bears head coach in the last 30 years. He won games. Ben Johnson knows he can get away with this intense, demanding style if he can turn it into success. Players are receptive to it because they know what happened last year. Johnson is not only trying to make them a good team but also looking to root out the shirkers. He doesn't want players on this roster who are okay with cutting corners. This training camp will go a long way in finding out who they are.