Ben Johnson orchestrated another great game plan for the Detroit Lions in their 34-17 win over the Chicago Bears. With this win, the Lions improved to 13-2 and took another step towards securing the first seed in the NFC.
The Lions, with Johnson as the offensive coordinator, are known for having trick plays as a regular part of the game plan. Today, they ran another special one against the Bears with Jared Goff and Jahmyr Gibbs. The QB-RB duo initiated a fake fumble and trip play, leading to an easy touchdown for Sam LaPorta.
Fans React to Ben Johnson’s Trick Play Call vs. Bears
Goff and Gibbs perfectly executed Johnson’s play call, and fans on social media were in awe of it. The Lions OC received a lot of praise for his confidence in coming up with such a play in a divisional matchup.
Here are some of the reactions:
Ben Johnson might have the most creative offensive mindset ever
— Charlie Quinn (@CharlieQuinnMMA) December 22, 2024
“The man’s cooking up plays straight out of Madden on Rookie mode. Absolute sicko mode, and I love it!” said one fan.
Another fan added, “What a play, the entire of Chicago stood still and fell for it.”
Ben Johnson heard Andy Reid say “fumblerooski” 500 times like I have this month and decided to actually do it https://t.co/SjXVIGqi1v
— Logan Doyle (@doyle_logan) December 22, 2024
“Ben Johnson is a genius,” said another fan.
Yeah just hire Ben Johnson now #Bears https://t.co/gHOnnHriTQ
— Brad Warner (@bwarner1224) December 22, 2024
Johnson is in his third season as Detroit’s offensive coordinator, and he has continued to build his reputation around the league. With him calling plays on offense, the Lions have improved every season and have become arguably the best team in the NFC.
The Lions have the best-scoring offense in the league this year, and Johnson has also helped Goff redeem himself. The 30-year-old quarterback has thrown for 4,095 yards, 33 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions in 15 games. He also has registered a career-best completion percentage (71.4%) and passer rating (112.2) this year.
The Lions OC will be pursued by multiple teams for the head coaching position after this season, but he is in no rush to accept an offer just for the sake of it. He loves working in Detroit, and unless a good organization comes for him, Johnson will continue being one of the best offensive coordinators in the league.
Johnson Has Left a Good Impression on The Bears
The Bears are among the teams reportedly interested in making Johnson their next head coach. The Lions have scored 57 points in two games against Chicago, and the 38-year-old coordinator has demonstrated his brilliance to them.
Johnson will be the right coach for Caleb Williams — he can bring out the best in him and turn him into a superstar quarterback. However, it’s not certain that Johnson would accept the Bears’ offer.
The Bears franchise is not a stable organization yet. As a result, Johnson could be hesitant to become the head coach in Chicago and wait for a different opportunity to open.
Working with Williams will be a challenge that Johnson would love, but he does not want to start his career as a head coach on a bad note. As a result, he will take his time in finding the perfect destination, which might cause the Bears to look at other alternatives like Kliff Kingsbury or Mike Vrabel.