Ben Johnson’s arrival has changed the conversation in Chicago, and not just because the Bears finally look like a team built to matter again. Year one showed why he was the right hire. He’s a respected offensive mind, and he turned Chicago from an NFC doormat into a franchise people now expect to be in the Super Bowl mix for years.
But the same confidence that makes Johnson such a force is also making life harder for the Bears before the 2026 season even starts.
Chicago Sun-Times reporter Jason Lieser captured one of Johnson’s more revealing lines: “We want to be feared... It’s not, ‘Are we going to win?’
It’s, ‘How much are we going to win by?’ That’s what we live by.”
That fits right in with Johnson’s earlier remarks about wanting to set records and run the league’s best offense.
He’s also been very clear about his feelings toward Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur. Put all of that together, and Johnson is sending a message that he won’t settle for anything less than dominance.
That kind of standard is exciting. It also gives opponents plenty to grab onto.
Whether teams say it out loud or not, those comments can work as fuel. Defenses will hear them and want to make a statement.
Green Bay can lean into the underdog role. The Bears, meanwhile, are the ones left carrying the spotlight that comes with Johnson’s bold talk.
None of that is meant to downplay what Chicago could be in 2026. There’s every reason to think this roster can contend for a Super Bowl, and even challenge a loaded Los Angeles Rams roster as the conference’s best answer to them.
The bigger point is simpler: Johnson’s confidence is part of what’s driving the Bears forward, but it also makes them an easy target. Chicago is going to get everybody’s best shot.
That’s the challenge now. The Bears have to show they can handle the attention and meet the expectations Johnson has set so publicly.
He’s not wrong to aim high. He’s just doing it in a way that makes the climb a little steeper.
Still, there’s no denying the respect Johnson commands, or the talent Chicago has to back up his words. If the Bears are going to deliver the historic 2026 run fans are hoping for, they’ll have to do it with the league watching closely.
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It is a familiar tradeoff for a young quarterback with big arm talent: play aggressively and keep the offense dangerous, or play safer and leave potential on the field. Johnson has stressed that balance in practice, and for Chicago that focus matters because the Bears are trying to build an attack that can stress defenses without sacrificing the kind of accuracy that makes the whole thing work. [Read more 🡒]