Peter Schrager and the “Good Morning Football” crew believe that new Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson actively instigated a rivalry with Green Bay Packers HC Matt LaFleur when he made a comment gloating about the Detroit Lions’ 2-0 record against the Packers in 2024 at his introductory press conference.
NFL Analyst Believes Ben Johnson Is Antagonizing Matt LaFleur
A discussion on the Jan. 23 episode of “Good Morning Football” was centered around Johnson’s comments about LaFleur after his initial compliments to his other competitors in the NFC North.
Schrager started out by saying, “Guys, Ben Johnson and Matt LaFleur have no relationships. Nothing, there’s nothing. There is no overlap, there is no friendship. This is spicy. This isn’t ‘Hey, I’m poking my old buddy,’ ‘Here, we actually worked together at Central Michigan in the late 80s, yeah’ — there’s nothing.
“He called his name out in a press conference — at his opening coach address. Meaning that’s forever. They’ll have that always. Two words he used were someone’s name he doesn’t know. I don’t know if it’s bold, I don’t know if that’s funny, I don’t know if it’s hubris. It’s certainly something.”
As mentioned above, Johnson made complimenting comments toward his other NFC North competition:
“Dan Campbell, Kevin O’Connell – you talk about two coaches that are up for the Coach of the Year awards as the season ends here.”
Johnson’s expression then turned into a boyish grin as he quipped, “And to be quite frank with you, I kinda enjoyed beating Matt LaFleur twice a year.”
New #Bears HC Ben Johnson: “To be quite frank with you, I kinda enjoyed beating Matt LaFleur twice a year.” 🍿pic.twitter.com/qfny13ZCWT
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) January 22, 2025
The Bears and Packers’ rivalry is the oldest in pro football, with over a century of back-and-forth between the NFC opponents. Green Bay has had Chicago’s number over the past decade, however, having won 17 of the past 20 meetings since 2015.
In fact, the Bears had a losing streak lasting over six years against Green Bay since 2018, one they could’ve broken at Soldier Field last season, but a missed field goal as time expired lengthened the losing streak. Chicago did, however, manage to win its other game against the Packers at Lambeau Field in the regular-season finale and put an end to their jinx.
Johnson knows he’s up against a division that posted historic numbers last year. The NFC North finished 45-23 in the regular season and a 33-11 record against the rest of the NFL.
The Minnesota Vikings became the first 14-3 playoff team to go on the road in the Wild Card round, with the Lions taking the division as Green Bay returned to the postseason for a second straight season.
It will be interesting to see how the rivalry between the Bears and Packers shapes up. Johnson symbolically throwing down the gauntlet to LaFleur augurs well with new bulletin board material coming into play.