Amon-Ra St. Brown, Ryan Poles Sound Off On Chicago Bears Hiring Ben Johnson

After a home playoff loss, the 2024 NFL season ended in a bittersweet fashion for receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, coach Ben Johnson, and the Detroit Lions supporters. The NFL, maybe more than any other league, doesn’t allow one to slow down to process those feelings. Less than 48 hours after the playoff collapse, Johnson accepted the Chicago Bears head coach position.

Johnson steps into the role of a lifetime, but former USC Trojans wide receiver St. Brown and the Detroit Lions lose their offensive architect.

“How do I feel about it? Obviously I love Ben [Johnson]. He’s one of my favorite coaches that I’ve ever had, I would say for sure. He’s smart. He’s one of the hardest-working coaches I’ve been around. Obviously, I would want to have him in Detroit forever, but that’s not the reality….A lot of coaches want to be a head coach at some point in their lives, and I feel like this is the best opportunity for him,” said Lions All-Pro receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown about the departure of Johnson on the St. Brown Podcast.

"He's one of the hardest working coaches that I've been around. Obviously I would want to have him in Detroit forever but that's not the reality of things."

Amon-Ra St. Brown gives his thoughts on Ben Johnson leaving Detroit to become the head coach of the Chicago Bears 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/Wh8rQaA9Oa
— St. Brown Podcast (@StBrownPodcast) January 22, 2025

Johnson’s introductory meeting with the Bears’ staff in Halas Hall made sweeping impressions not just on the facility workers and front-office leadership but made viral waves via social media as well. Johnson, known for his stoicism and robotic-like nature on the sideline, displayed more personality and authoritative presence than he’d ever previously shown to the public eye. You can never truly tell through the lens, but the exchange looked authentic. Johnson didn’t appear as a guy trying to show off for the camera, and when you hear testimonies from players such as St. Brown, it’s easier to take things at face value.

"My family and I are incredibly blessed and fortunate to take this next step in our journey, and I cannot wait to lead our players, our support staff and organization, while doing so at the service of Bears fans. We are looking forward to fully ingraining ourselves in the great city of Chicago, as we work to create an impact in this special community. I am excited to partner with Ryan and the entire organization as we work to create a championship-caliber program. We are ready to get to work." said Johnson about the opportunity to be the Bears coach.

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Chicago general manager Ryan Poles spoke glowingly of Johnson and the outlook of the Bears’ future. The forward-facing statements usually always read positively as that is a part of the job, but Poles’s faith in Johnson is real. After all, he’s hitching his wagon and along the Johnson train. If the Bears get off to or slow start or have a poor season, Poles will in all likelihood be the first man out of the door. He’s counting on Johnson to be the coach everyone believes he can be more than anyone.

"Throughout our search process, I was thoroughly impressed by Ben's character, intelligence, leadership and ability to connect. A progressive offensive mind, Ben's plan for all three phases of our team, which is centered on creating a winning and competitive environment, became evidently clear. Meeting with Ben and gaining an understanding of his process and vision, the more confident we became that Ben is the right leader for our team and that he and I will be great partners in building our team and shaping our franchise for long-term success.” said general manager Ryan Poles.

🗣️ "This is exactly where we wanted to be." pic.twitter.com/mT56UoVGdl
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) January 21, 2025

"It is undeniable how passionate Ben is for serving in the role of head coach of the Chicago Bears, and we are primed, equipped and excited to welcome him and his family to Chicago and to commence our process of building a championship-caliber team, together. This is just the beginning." Poles continued.

The Bears are hitting the ground running this offseason and now the next step is improving the roster, and finalizing a staff for Johnson.

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