Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson was tired of hearing all the media chatter about what the team planned to do at quarterback all week leading up to the New York Jets game. He made the decision earlier in the week that Tyson Bagent would be the starter. Case Keenum would back him up. However, that wasn’t enough. Johnson knew he needed a way to send a message to everybody that the speculation was pointless. He ended up going with a pretty rare idea. He put both quarterbacks on the field at the same time.
Bagent lined up out wide as a receiver while Keenum stood in shotgun. He took the snap and handed it to D’Andre Swift for a 2-yard gain. It was the only play of the day for Keenum, but because he was technically the primary QB on that snap, he was credited with the start and, eventually, the win. Bagent went on to start the rest of the game, completing 73.5% of his passes and piling up almost 500 total offense. Johnson stated after the game that the week-long chatter annoyed him. This was his rebuttal.
Apparently, Ben Johnson was thinking something even crazier.
Right guard Jonah Jackson was on 104.3 The Score to discuss the game against the Jets. He was asked about that first play. He revealed that Johnson came to him earlier in the week and said he planned to do something wild on the opening snap. What nobody outside the building knew was that it wasn’t just the idea of having Bagent and Keenum together at the same time.
“Two quarterbacks on the field at the same time? Or none at all?”
Those were the words the coach said. Johnson came close to running a play with no quarterback on the field. One can only imagine how bizarre that might’ve been.
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Ben Johnson continues to prove that he is a walking contradiction. When you watch the man operate, the intensity is palpable. Nobody wants to win the game more than him. Everything is taken seriously. Then, when you hear stories like this, it makes you wonder if he’s taking the game seriously at all. It is part of his charm. You have no idea what the guy is going to do next. All you know is it’s going to be unexpected and probably work more often than not. It is hard not to love him for that.
It is incredible to think this is where the Bears are.
For many years, they’ve been straddled with coaches stuck in the past. Old school guys focused on defense and ball-security offense. It was tough to watch at times. Johnson is the perfect marriage of old-school appreciation and new-school thinking. It is what makes him such a nightmare to game plan against. Throw in a petty personality and sneaky sense of humor, and you probably have one of the most compelling characters in recent Chicago sports history.
Bears fans should appreciate what they’re seeing. There is no telling how long it will last. Maybe a couple more years, maybe a decade or longer. Either way, it is important that they recognize Johnson as a unique brand of entertainment that they haven’t had in this town for a long time. Such things should be cherished.
