Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson showed a glimpse of his fiery side during OTAs on Wednesday, and his staff was right there with him.
Billed as an offensive whiz, Johnson’s demeanor as head coach has been a source of intrigue in his first year on the job. In the first organized team activity, Johnson could be heard correcting tight end Cole Kmet and seen doing the same with quarterback Caleb Williams. Johnson downplayed the display afterward.
The practice field was littered with assistants doing the same with various players.
Joe Tuney Gets Honest About Bears HC Ben Johnson
Bears HC Ben Johnson a Different Kind of Coach for Joe Thuney
That begs the question, which style do players prefer – calm and collected or fired up and passionate, emotional or stoic? Bears’ guard Joe Thuney has experienced some of the best.
Thuney began his career under Bill Belichick with the New England Patriots, whose demeanor often revealed little but was known as a hard-line leader. Then, Thuney played for Andy Reid with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Reid is not a fiery coach, per se. But he is viewed as more player-friendly than his former coaching counterpart.
As far as where Johnson fits in that, Thuney said the Bears HC is his own man.
“I’ve just been very impressed,” Thuney told Clocker Sports on Wednesday. “I’m not sure which one.
“Just during the meetings, I’ve just been – just really impressed, and I’ve learned a lot. And just he’s very – he just communicates things very clearly, and what he wants, and what he expects, which makes it easy for us players because we know exactly what to do and just have to go execute. And so he’s kind of just his own [person], and it’s been awesome.”
Bears Lock Up Joe Thuney
The Bears traded for Thuney this offseason, and one of the biggest lingering questions was bout his future. Thuney was entering the final year of a five-year, $80 million contract. He said he was not focused on it during his introductory press conference in March.
The Bears remedied that, inking the four-time Super Bowl champion to a two-year, $35 million contract extension on Wednesday.
Thuney said he let his agent handle the negotiations, but the situation with the Bears and Johnson “felt right.”
“The players, the coaches, the whole management, it’s just been– it’s been awesome just to take part on this team. Obviously, it’s early and things. But just the attention to detail, the focus, the passion from the players, the coaches, the staff, everybody, it seems like everyone’s pulling in the same direction. Everybody’s really determined to keep working and improving, and it’s kind of what I’m used to, and it felt right. And then, Chicago as a city, a franchise, so much history, and I just couldn’t be happier. And, yeah, really, really excited to be here.”
Thuney’s extension takes his contract through the end of fellow interior offensive linemen and Bears offseason additions, Drew Dalman and Jonah Jackson.
That is also the end of Williams’ rookie contract, minus the potential fifth-year option.