Jaylon Johnson missed the Chicago Bears’ three-day mandatory minicamp, so he got a bit of a head start on his pre-training camp break. However, Johnson has already gotten the full experience of new head coach Ben Johnson and his staff.
According to the two-time Pro Bowler, Johnson is just what the team needs, including quarterback Caleb Williams.
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Johnson, who conducted a charity golf event for one of his non-profits, Kevvy’s Vision, on June 6, joined NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero to discuss his take on the new head coach’s impact on the second-year QB.
“I feel like it’s hard to go from being the Heisman Trophy winner, and being able to play this certain style of ball, to now, last year, of course, not having the structure that was necessary to get him excelling in the right direction. And then now, coming in and having a true offensive mastermind, it’s going to take some time. It’s going to be new, it’s going to be different, of course,” Johnson said on “The Insiders” on June 12.
“I know the changing of the stance, the changing to more under center, the different ways of doing things I know that we didn’t do last year. And then I would say he hasn’t done too much, really, in his career. But I would just say it’s gonna take a lot of learning, and I think he’s willing to learn. I think he’s really coachable.”
Ben Johnson vowed to make Williams uncomfortable with what he would ask of him. The difference has been apparent, and it is not exclusive to Johnson or his dynamic with Williams.
“It’s gonna be real uncomfortable, because it’ll be different,” Johnson said.
“I think he definitely has everything that he needs to have, as far as the physical makeup, the mental makeup. It’s just going to be building down that whole foundation, that old way of doing things, and then kind of re-establishing himself along with who he already is.”
Jaylon Johnson said Ben Johnson asserted from the outset that QB play determines team success. The corner said he had never heard that said so plainly by a coach before.
That is just part of the refreshing energy Ben Johnson has brought to the Bears.
Jaylon Johnson Admits ‘Weird’ Tension With Ben Johnson
Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson speaks with reporters after the conclusion of mandatory minicamp. Mandatory credit: Clocker Sports
Johnson noted that every staff he has played for – he is on his third staff – has attempted to instill a new culture, and this one is no different. He also cited a popular theme coming out of the team’s facilities throughout the offseason program, and that is the staff’s attention to detail.
The former second-round pick, Johnson, called it the “new standard.”
“They’re coming off of it, and that’s good. I feel like for us, too, we need that as a young team,” Johnson said. “I think just having that accountability, having that staff that’s gonna come in and really show us the way and almost pull us along, and not just [say], ‘Okay, guys, let’s go at your own pace.’ No. [They] grabbed our hand, and it’s like, ‘No, let’s go. This is the way that you want to go about playing football.
“It’s one of the things where we can trust them. And we really just have to be coachable, and then go out there and execute. I don’t think anything that they’ll do or not do is going to hurt us. I think for us, it’s really just go out there and execute; Trust in them, trust in what they say, and going out there and playing our best ball.”
Johnson and Johnson “faced off” numerous times. The now-Bears head coach was the offensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions for the past three seasons.
The Bears star jokingly admitted to some “weird” moments up at Halas Hall.
“For the most part, I think every time I see him, we kind of just did that look like it’s kind of weird being on the same team, because we’ve been going at it for a long time,” Johnson told Peliserro and Rapoport. “I think really in practice and in camp, it’ll be really fun. Then, we’ll be able to really compete against each other.”
