JJ Watt has seen a lot of elite offenses up close. When you’ve spent a decade chasing down the likes of Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Peyton Manning, Cam Newton, and Lamar Jackson at their peaks, you develop a sharp eye for what makes an offense tick. So when Watt goes out of his way to praise what’s happening in Chicago under Ben Johnson, it’s worth paying attention.
Watt recently shared his thoughts on The Pat McAfee Show, and he didn’t hold back when it came to Johnson’s impact on the Bears. According to Watt, what’s happening in Chicago isn’t just a nice surprise-it’s the beginning of something potentially special. He’s been tracking Johnson’s work since September, and while the creativity in the playbook is obvious, Watt pointed to something even more impressive: Johnson’s ability to adapt.
“I’ve talked about Ben Johnson multiple times,” Watt said. “But just the things that he does and how blunt and honest he is about correcting issues that are wrong…”
That kind of self-awareness and willingness to adjust on the fly? That’s rare-even among the NFL’s top-tier coaches.
Johnson isn’t just calling plays; he’s diagnosing problems and fixing them in real time. Watt highlighted how Johnson publicly acknowledged the team’s struggles in the run game going into their bye week.
Since then? The Bears’ ground attack has been on fire.
Now Johnson has turned his attention to the passing game-and if the past is any indication, that’s about to take a leap too.
“He’s doing it while winning,” Watt added. “His players respect it.”
That last point matters. Scheme and play design are critical, but buy-in from the locker room is what turns good into great. Johnson has earned that respect by delivering results, and he’s done it without overhauling the roster or needing multiple offseasons to get his system fully installed.
And here’s the kicker: according to Watt, we haven’t even seen the full version of this offense yet.
“They are in first place in the NFC. That’s the Chicago Bears, who last year had a complete collapse and fell apart,” Watt said.
“He’s come in and done this, and he hasn’t even added that second full offseason to do everything he wants to do. I think the sky’s the limit there when he continues to get Caleb [Williams] to develop.”
Let that sink in. Johnson has taken a team that bottomed out last season and turned them into division leaders in Year 1-and he’s doing it with a rookie quarterback still learning the ropes.
This isn’t the final product. It’s the prototype.
Watt compared Johnson’s current work to a fighter operating in “base form”-not even close to his full power. And yet, the Bears are on pace to score 443 points this season.
That would be the third-highest total in franchise history. And if Johnson’s past trajectory in Detroit is any clue-where his offenses jumped from 453 points to 564 over three seasons-this is just the beginning.
So what’s holding the Bears back from reaching that next tier right now? It’s the passing game.
The run game is already among the league’s best, powered by Johnson’s schematics and a physical, well-coached offensive line. Caleb Williams has made strides-he’s getting more comfortable, more efficient-but he hasn’t quite put it all together yet in the air.
That’s the last piece of the puzzle.
Once Williams starts stacking completions and fully unlocks the passing game, this offense could go from dangerous to downright terrifying. And if Johnson’s track record tells us anything, that day might not be far off.
Watt summed it up best: “Ben Johnson has done a phenomenal job with the Bears… His players respect him, and I think the sky is the limit in Chicago.”
It’s early, but the signs are all there. The Bears might have found their guy-not just at quarterback, but on the headset. And if this is just the beginning, the rest of the NFC should be watching closely.