Ben Johnson Is Stealing A Philosophy From Another Sport To Build His Roster

Building an NFL roster is not an exact science. There is more than one way to do it. The problem is finding those ways is difficult. It involves a delicate mix of elite athletes and capable leaders. One bad egg can threaten to spoil the bunch if you're not careful. There is also one other problem in the mind of Ben Johnson. Teams can often get overly infatuated with specific types of players at certain positions. They love certain types, even if pairing them together might not be the best for the team.

Johnson developed a philosophy over the years that doesn't entirely align with NFL thinking. It comes more from another popular American sport, he explained at the NFL Owners Meetings.

“(Montgomery) had a heck of a start to his career here in Chicago and (we) felt good about his play style and how we want to play football there in Detroit, and it really translated well,” Johnson said. “And then when you get into the draft prospects, we viewed Gibbs as more of a weapon. Not necessarily 1A, 1B, but more they could coexist and really complement each other’s skill set.

“To me, that’s how you want to construct a roster from all your skill positions is: you don’t want five 6-4 guys necessarily in the receiver room. You want more of a basketball team where you’ve got the point guard, you’ve got the power forward. You have a wealth of different skill sets that you can look to call upon wherever you’re at in the field and whatever situation arises.”

Diversity is key.

That is what great basketball teams often showcase. The best ones have answers to any situation. They can beat you with good shooting from deep. There is enough size down low to handle rebounding and enough speed to run the fast break. Johnson saw this approach work brilliantly during his time in Detroit. They had David Montgomery as the power back who could wear down defenses. Jahmyr Gibbs added an element of speed. Then, in the passing game, there is the tough and crafty Amon-Ra St. Brown with his route-running skills coupled with the blistering vertical speed of Jameson Williams. That is why they were so difficult to defend.

Ben Johnson hopes to recreate that situation in Chicago.

Naturally, it might take some time to assemble the right pieces. He has some good ones in place. D.J. Moore is your after-the-catch threat. Rome Odunze is that big-bodied receiver who is deadly in 50-50 situations. D'Andre Swift provides a speed element at running back. If Ben Johnson sticks to this basketball approach, it is reasonable to think the Bears will be hunting for more power in the backfield and speed at wide receiver. The last time they had an offense with such diversity was probably 2018. You had the power element of Jordan Howard, the frenetic agility of Tarik Cohen, route-running wizard Allen Robinson, and vertical threat Taylor Gabriel. This iteration of the team has a chance to be even better.