Bears preseason game vs. Bills offered a glimpse of how HC Ben Johnson plans to prep his assistants for bigger roles in the future
A mark of a great head coach.
When the Chicago Bears hired head coach Ben Johnson, the first-year head coach got to quick work forming the rest of his coaching staff with experienced veteran minds and up-in-coming assistants.
In Johnson and defensive coordinator Dennis Allen, the Bears have two top minds running the offense and defense in 2025 and beyond.
Developing the rest of the staff below will be key for Johnson’s coaching future and he already had a head start on that process during the team’s second preseason game against the Buffalo Bills.
During the blowout performance, Johnson handed over offensive play-calling duties to offensive coordinator Declan Doyle and defensive play-calling duties to defensive backs coach Al Harris throughout the entire second-half.
“I thought they did a great job, first time in that setting,” Johnson said. “A lot of thoughts going through their heads. Wish we could get more coaches over the course of the training camp in the preseason to get that exposure, that experience, but year one, that’s probably all we’ll do there. But I thought those guys did a good job as well, wanted to give them a shout out.”
For Doyle, this was a big opportunity for the youngest offensive coordinator in the NFL. Doyle has a bright future in this league as a coach and could eventually pursue a role with full-time play calling duties with another team. After the game, quarterback Tyson Bagent noted it was “business as usual” with Doyle calling plays in the second-half.
As for Harris, the 50-year-old former defensive back is well on his way to earning a potential defensive coordinator title, likely with another team since it’s likely Dennis Allen holds that role in Chicago for the foreseeable future. Play-calling is the one thing missing from his coaching resume and orchestrating a shutout second-half in which the Bills totaled 133 net yards was impressive.
Johnson’s plan to give up offensive and defensive play-calling duties in the second-half of Sunday’s game is right out of the Sean McVay mindset when it comes to developing, and sustaining, a strong coaching staff.
McVay, the Los Angeles Rams head coach, has developed quite the coaching tree over the last few years with assistants such as Matt LaFleur, Zac Taylor, Brandon Staley, and Kevin O’Connell going on to become NFL head coaches with another team.
Even former assistants such as Nick Caley, the Houston Texans’ new offensive coordinator, got his promotion by showing what he can do calling plays in a limited preseason role. The same goes for Rams’ assistant head coach and passing game coordinator Aubrey Pleasant, who interviewed for the Bears defensive coordinator position before hiring Dennis Allen.
Doyle and Harris aren’t the only assistants being “groomed” for higher roles. Giving the assistant head coach title to wide receivers coach Antwaan Randle-El shows how Johnson feels about him as well and the growth he can have in the coaching ranks.
If Johnson is on the path toward becoming the next “Sean McVay” he’ll need to be prepared to lose eventual assistants that could be poached by other teams. Being able to give assistants early opportunities like this helps build that trust within the staff while allowing the coaches show they’re prepared for bigger roles in the future.
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It was an encouraging sight.
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