Ben Johnson confirms suspicion about Roschon Johnson’s limited offensive role and where he stands in the Bears’ backfield
The former fourth-round pick has struggled to get involved offensively but still has a role on the team.
The Chicago Bears saw a much-improved run game coming out of the bye week on Monday night against the Washington Commanders, rushing for a season-high 145 yards.
Getting the ground game going has been an emphasis for head coach Ben Johnson for weeks, and having the extended break allowed for the entire offense to clean up the details to open up more lanes for the backs to explode through.
D’Andre Swift led the way for the Bears with 108 yards on the ground and again dominated the backfield touches, while averaging 7.7 yards per carry. But other players got involved as well to reach that 145-yard total, yet one player continues to be cast to the wayside.
Ben Johnson explains the lack of usage with Roschon Johnson on offense
Throughout the first four games of the season, only two running backs touched the ball in Chicago: Swift and seventh-round rookie Kyle Monangai. A lot of people have been wondering what’s happened with former fourth-round pick Roschon Johnson, and rightfully so.
Johnson showed flashes as a downhill runner who can bring a lot of power in key situations. He showed that in 2024, rushing for six touchdowns. But, going into the 2025 regular season, Johnson dealt with a nagging foot injury that forced him to miss the season opener. He’s been active in the last four games and has not been an offensive factor. The team’s head coach finally explained why.
“We certainly value what he’s bringing to us in a special teams capacity right now,” Johnson said on Friday. “It’s one of those things where we would love to get him more carries, but that also takes the ball away from other guys. I would love to get him more, but it’s a little bit hard right now with all the mouths we have to feed.”
To put it simply, the staff doesn’t view the third-year back on the same level as Swift and Monangai when it comes to being an impactful player on offense worthy of getting touches. And even Monangai is barely starting to turn that corner.
Entering Week 7, Swift leads the backfield with 70 rushing attempts, followed by Monangai with 22. Johnson, in Week 6, finally got his first handoff of the season and turned it into a six-yard gain. Seeing this usage, it’s easy to see where people can be disappointed, but Swift proved in Week 6 why he’s getting such a large share of the work.
“This guy is an explosive athlete, we just gotta give him some space and he can do some dynamic things with the ball in his hands,” Johnson said of Swift. “That’s been the case all season long. I’m glad it came to fruition there last week when we needed it. I think he has that ability to ignite our offense, give us a spark, make people miss in space, and he can be dangerous.”
As it stands, that’s the expectation when this backfield is at full health. However, it’s worth noting Swift was limited on Thursday with a groin injury, and while he’s battled through a few injuries this season already, this will be one to watch. And that’s the benefit of having a guy like Johnson waiting for an opportunity to step up, but that’s simply just where things stand with him right now.
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