Nobody can argue that DJ Moore is among the best players on the Chicago Bears' offense. He's been that for the past two years. If anybody should've been happy that Ben Johnson had come down from Detroit, it was him. It meant a sharp offensive mind was in charge, meaning greater opportunities for him. Johnson sang his praises, indicating he couldn't wait to work with the wide receiver. However, he also had a message for Moore and others. Get comfortable being uncomfortable. He planned to demand a lot from them.
The first game was a decent start. Moore had three catches for 68 yards. However, the receiver might've fought himself on the wrong end of Johnson's ire. One of the biggest moments of the game came when Caleb Williams airmailed Moore on what looked like a sure touchdown in the 4th quarter. Offensive coordinator Declan Doyle revealed that wasn't the case. It turns out the receiver adjusted his route away from what was designed, which threw off the play's timing, resulting in the incompletion.
DJ Moore needs to be careful about such things.
One thing we have learned about Johnson in the short time he's been around is that he's meticulous. Every play is designed to be run a specific way. There isn't any room for freelancing by the players. Jameson Williams confirmed this a few months ago when asked about the difference between Johnson and new Detroit Lions offensive coordinator, John Morton.
“I think he’s allowing the receivers to be receivers. He’s lining up and giving us routes and telling us to go win.”
“He knows our abilities, he knows we can win 1-on-1 routes, he knows how open we can get when we get those 1-on-1 coverages.”
“He’s putting his faith in his guys and I love that about him. He’s aggressive, too. It’s not just me, everyone gets to run more routes, we expanded the offense, we expanded the playbook a little bit.”
That paints a pretty clear picture of Johnson. He expects his wide receivers to run a specific route on every play. Making changes on the fly throws a wrench in the gears, and everything is out of balance. DJ Moore was responsible for that. Now one such mistake won't lead to any issues. Still, if Moore makes a habit of doing things like that in the future, he may find Johnson less and less receptive to getting him the ball.
