NFL Execs Ranked Best Play-Callers In NFL. Check Out Ben Johnson's Spot

Ben Johnson has plenty of fans in the media. They've praised him at every turn following his glittering three-year stint with the Detroit Lions as their offensive coordinator. His work helped them produce probably the most successful two-year run in modern franchise history. When you have a top-five offense every year, it's only a matter of time before you get a head coaching job in the NFL. The real shock was that the Chicago Bears became the team that managed to reel him in.

An interesting question many haven't asked is what the rest of the league thinks of Johnson. There have been plenty of instances where a coach doesn't have near the number of admirers among actual football people compared to fans and media. Jeff Howe of The Athletic decided to collect some data on this. He polled several coaches and executives around the NFL with one question. Who are the three best offensive play-callers in the league right now? The results were striking. Rams head coach Sean McVay claimed the top spot, with 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan sitting behind him at #2. Right there, ahead of Kevin O'Connell and Andy Reid, was Johnson at #3.

"Johnson got a ton of love for his work in Detroit, so the voters are evidently predicting carryover to his head coaching role with the Bears."

Ben Johnson is the real deal.

People must understand that putting him ahead of Reid, a future Hall of Famer, is pretty crazy. Many consider him one of the great offensive geniuses of the past 30 years. It is the highest praise that executives believe Ben Johnson is on that same tier. It also means big things for the Bears. If these assessments are correct, a lot of winning is on the way. McVay and Shanahan have both been to multiple Super Bowls. O'Connell has made the playoffs twice, winning at least 13 games in each of those seasons. Andy Reid has three rings. Great offensive play callers thrive in today's league. Johnson also inherits a pretty good roster that was augmented with more firepower this offseason. It would be a shock if he's not winning by next year at the latest.