They’ve been saying for weeks that Ben Johnson doesn’t mess around when it comes to practice. The new Chicago Bears head coach takes it as seriously as anybody who has held that job in the last two decades. Players quickly discovered what happens when they make mistakes or don’t do precisely as instructed. Johnson already has a reputation for intensity and a firm hand. Everybody from Cole Kmet and D.J. Moore to others admits it’s been a wake-up call. Johnson demands perfection.
He also isn’t afraid to put pressure on guys mentally. Not in the form of motivation, mind you. More like a professor dropping a pop quiz to gauge what they’ve learned. Players got the equivalent of that at Wednesday’s minicamp practice. According to Scott Bair of Marquee Sports Network, Johnson conducted several 11-on-11 drills where the entire playbook was opened up. Even wilder was that there was no script involved. Usually, there are in practice. Johnson wanted to see how guys responded to more game-like situations.
Johnson conducted a more competitive practice on Wednesday that was designed to test what players have learned to this point. They ran situational drills of all types, generally in 11-on-11 situations.
The biggest part of it: those sessions were unscripted.
“Really everything that had been installed over the last few weeks was up, and we’ll see the tape to see who handled it and who didn’t,” Johnson said. “Some guys (did) better than others. You could tell out there. But it was good to see. It felt more like football even though we don’t have the pads on.”
Ben Johnson is living up to the promise he made.
One of his first comments to the players during his introductory press conference was to get comfortable being uncomfortable. That didn’t just mean adding competition to the roster. Ben Johnson aimed to find every way possible to stress guys. It isn’t out of some weird psychological kink. The Bears head coach wants to win a championship. Only teams that can handle the pressure win Lombardi trophies. Too many times in years past, this team has crumbled under pressure. Johnson knows that throwing them unexpected curveballs in practice will better prepare them for the real thing in games. They’ll be better prepared to deliver in decisive moments once they get used to dealing with surprise twists and turns during a season. It will also help him weed out guys who aren’t up to the task.
@Krisanthony You hit the head on the nail for me with the HITS ‘principle’. As if we (they, whatever) need another acronym! How cute! I’m usually not a jerk like that – but acronyms are so over rated for me. And for the life of me – was Ditka and Lovie the only people that you felt like you heard ‘news’ from since 1985? ((I try to think, but nothing happens)) Even Club “W”ub – – yeah, lets not lose a game so we can’t play some Nelly in the locker room after the game. This is just my feeling,… Read more »
When Flus was hired, I got cringy when he talked about his HITS principle as if it meant anything other than lame HS coach speak. My guy Ben has been honest and real all along. Yeah, no block no rock is a slogan but he means it. He answers questions asked and doesn’t play the Belichick deuche act where he doesn’t say anything as if he’s holding state secrets. This is just a whole new world for Bears fans to have a guy like this. For a moment it looked like Nagy got it and was trying to be real.… Read more »
As a first time HC Ben certainly seems to know how to run a team and a practice much better than the coaches we have had in the past. He doesn’t seem like a Rookie HC. Things just feel different with him than they did with Flus, Nagy, Trestman, and even Fox, who was a HC for many years before being hired by the Bears.
I think we’ve answered that is he the leader of men question with Ben. That’s all well and good but you know what I want? Leader of winning football games. The two are not synonymous no matter how much old school says it is.. it’s on my guy Ben now..
I’ve been beating this horse since Coach Johnson signed his contract that we have the right guy.!