Ben Johnson shares the biggest issue he had with the Bears defense and the team is already working diligently to fix it
The Chicago Bears defense struggled throughout the majority of the 2025 season in multiple key areas and the team has already made significant strides toward improving that side of the ball.
It was no secret that the Chicago Bears struggled defensively during the 2025 season. A lot of those issues were masked by the takeaways, but overall it wasn’t a pretty sight when the unit was on the field. And it wasn’t defensive coordinator Dennis Allen’s fault.
Allen inherited nine of the 11 starters on the defensive side of the ball from the previous year. The only additions he actually brought in were CB Nahshon Wright and DT Grady Jarrett. He simply wasn’t working with his style players and it was clear the players Chicago had in the building did not fit his system.
A lot of the outside complaints centered around the team’s lack of a pass rush. However, head coach Ben Johnson took issue with another area shown by the unit after watching the tape from last season.
Ben Johnson was more upset about the team’s coverage ability, not the lack of pass rush
“I think, when you watch the clips over the course of the season, we certainly want to be tighter in our coverage,” Bears head coach Ben Johnson explained on the Bears, Etc. Podcast. “Particularly our man-coverage. It was just an area where, when you looked at it, we didn’t feel like we gave our pass rush a chance to get there. And so it’s a two-edged sword there where we had to get a little bit better getting off the ball and getting after the quarterback. But, at the same time, the tighter the coverage we can maintain, the better off we’re going to be there.”
After hearing that, it makes sense why the Bears prioritized certain players early in free agency. Players who could bring more speed and were strong coverage defenders such as Coby Bryant and Devin Bush.
Looking at the Bears defense from last season, 13 players played 50+ snaps in man coverage. Nine of those 13 players allowed a passer rating over 100.0. in coverage. However, Johnson still has faith in some of the returning players to improve based on he saw from the tape.
Cornerbacks Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon are two that Johnson specifically mentioned he’s excited to worth with next season.
“We need those guys out there,” Johnson said. “I really look forward to having them out there this spring and during training camp and getting able to get some really good work out of them.”
As for future additions, the Bears will continue targeting faster players that excel in man coverage. Johnson recognizes the lack of pass rush is still a concern as well. Fortunately, the Bears plan to draft at least one top defensive lineman in the 2026 NFL Draft.
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