Ben Johnson’s postgame comments on the Bears’ success in Week 1 is something that should have the NFL very afraid
The Chicago Bears opened the season with a massive 59-point explosion from head coach Ben Johnson’s offense and he’s still far from satisfied by the team’s overall performance in Week 1.
Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson had some bold expectations coming into the 2026 regular season when he said that his offense had the potential to be the NFL’s highest-scoring offense this season.
Many people brushed that off thinking he was just being overly confident in his guys. But, after a 59-point showing in Week 1 against the Carolina Panthers, the NFL needs to start taking his warning more seriously.
And the best part is, the Bears were still far from their best in the regular season opener. There’s truly no limit to what this team will eventually look like at their full potential.
Ben Johnson’s postgame comments show how the Chicago Bears are just getting started
“We talked about with the team, find a way to get to the plane with a win. And we did that,” Johnson told reporters after the game. “We accomplished that. Now we’re in a race to improve – in all three phases and collectively as a team. That’s what we gotta do.”
A good place to start is on the defensive side of the ball, a new-look unit that allowed 37 points against a Panthers’ offense that had plenty of questions of their own coming into a season with a new play-caller. It was a rough showing for Dennis Allen’s group, and while people are calling for his head, it’s still just Week 1 people.
“I told those guys, you’d like to think in a long season like this, we’re playing our worst football early on and we continue to get better and better and better,” Johnson said. “That’s really the message right there. In all three phases, we all have to get better each and every week.”
The performance of the defense will certainly be a talking point throughout the week, but going back to the offense, Johnson wasn’t thrilled with how Week 1 went despite the scoreboard and stat sheet. The Bears had numerous penalties and got bailed out on a few occasions as well, not to mention starting the game with a turnover, which was quickly brushed under the rug.
“There’s still a number of things on there that I didn’t love,” Johnson explained. “Just from the sideline perspective. And yet, some of these guys came out and they played hard, man… That was really encouraging to see. I thought these guys really rose to the occasion. They played hard for each other. We talked about weathering the storm there early on and we had some adversity on that first drive. And yet, no one blinks, no one bats an eye. That’s probably what I’m most proud of.”
Overall, it was a very very impressive performance. And yet, Ben Johnson will not settle for anything less. It’s only going to get better from year for this entire team.
