Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson has made a huge turnaround in his first season on the job. The Bears captured the NFC North title in 2025 after finishing last in the NFC North last season. Quarterback Caleb Williams showed tremendous improvement after a rocky rookie season, and the team ranked in the top 10 in points per game.
But Johnson wasn’t content with just winning the division title. He wants more. So when the Bears’ offense fell flat early in Week 18 — scoreless for three straight quarters against the Detroit Lions — Johnson took notice.
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According to ESPN, Johnson criticized the execution of his team’s offense after losing a game 19-16, saying he was “not happy” with the way the team was operating.
“I wasn’t happy with the offense today,” Johnson said.
He added: “We can’t put ourselves in a situation like this. I’m disappointed in the whole offense. I let those guys know that. We’re going to be better for it.”
Johnson later added that the team’s game plan was fairly simple and he had to investigate why the team couldn’t execute it.
Likewise, Williams agreed with the head coach’s assessment, admitting the offense’s performance in Week 18 was “flat.”
“We came out a little bit flat and I think we have to try to keep a sense of urgency from the beginning and keep going,” Williams said.
Williams added that the Bears need to get better on “both sides of the ball.” After losing to the San Francisco 49ers by 42 points in Week 17, the Bears’ defense did bounce back slightly against the Lions. The team utilized the usual bend defense but not breaking it down, limiting the Lions’ primary field goal opportunities once the team entered the red zone.
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But it wasn’t enough to get the win as the offense failed to gain traction early.
Ultimately, the loss didn’t hurt Chicago too much. The team still clinched the NFC’s second seed after the Philadelphia Eagles lost to the Washington Commanders in Week 18.
That leaves the Bears until Saturday to turn things around. The team will need to figure this out quickly as the rival Green Bay Packers come to town for the third meeting of the season between these two teams.
The Bears should be excited for this game. But if they hope to win, they need to execute in all phases — something the team was unable to do in Week 18.