‘Let’s take it to the next level’ — National NFL writer urges Ben Johnson to embrace villain role in Year 2 with the Bears
Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson came into the organization with plenty of confidence and backed it up leading his team to an 11-win season in 2025, all eyes will be on Chicago to see what Year 2 brings.
Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson brought immense confidence to the organization when he was hired last January, a level of confidence that was immediately backed up during his first season leading the team.
Johnson claimed the Bears were a “sleeping giant” during his introductory press conference after being hired. He woke that giant up from its slumber, leading the Bears to an 11-win season and an NFC North title in his first year.
He also admitted how much he enjoyed beating Green Bay Packers’ head coach Matt LaFleur twice a year, which was a bold jab at the leader of Chicago’s bitter rival. It wasn’t just words to fire up the fans, Johnson backed up those comments too by beating the Packers twice during the 2025-26 season, including a game in the playoffs.
The hatred Johnson had specifically for the Packers was deeply rooted and something Johnson didn’t plan to shy away from. Going into Year 2, one NFL writer is urging him to take that mindset to the next level.
Mike Florio urges Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson to lean into the villain role
“If Ben Johnson is going to lean fully into the Packers rivalry, then let’s take it to the next level,” Mike Florio said on 104.3 The Score. “Because, true fans of one team – diehard, this is my team – they hate everybody else. If Ben Johnson adopts that thought, where it’s not just screw the Packers it’s screw everyone except the Bears. . . I think it speaks to the level of confidence that Ben Johnson has in himself.”
After the 2025-26 season, Bears chairman George McCaskey and general manager Ryan Poles commended Johnson for the approach he had toward the Packers. He made it clear he did not like that team. It wasn’t anything personal toward any coach or player, but literally the team itself. For rivalries, that’s how it should be.
“The Bears and the Packers, they should not like each other,” Johnson explained at the NFL Combine. “I think it’s as simple as that. And I think that’s gonna make this rivalry, this game, something that people are going to watch here going forward.”
Florio brings up a good point, because that kind of mindset shouldn’t just be for the Packers. It should be for the entire division, and frankly any team the Bears face in the league. If Johnson wants to really embrace the villain role, he should have that kind of hatred for all 31 teams in the league.
That kind of energy from the head coach is something that will fire up the fans even more going into Year 2 and create a much stronger fanbase. Florio added it might rub other teams the wrong way and burn some bridges, but that shouldn’t be an issue for Johnson.
Ben Johnson is going to be in Chicago for years to come, who cares if he burns bridges along the way
“The job he has in Chicago, he very well may keep it until he’s ready to retire,” Florio added. “He may be the coach of the Bears for years to come. Or at least, by the time that it ends, he’s good enough to find another job somewhere else, even if he is agitating everyone. I think I like that and I think we see more of it this year. It makes football more interesting, even if part of it is an act, it still makes football more interesting when coaches are as passionate about the team and their enemies as the fans are.”
I fully agree with this logic. The Bears need to embrace that they are now the villains of the NFL, especially ahead of this season with seven standalone games on the schedule.
Fans would absolutely eat that up and it would show that the Bears’ confidence in themselves is at an all-time high. It’s up to Johnson to carry out that mindset and let it pour down to the rest of the organization. The NFL deserves this kind of bad guy team.