Chicago Bears' Ben Johnson Named NFL's Assistant Coach Of The Year

Chicago Bears coach Ben Johnson was awarded the 2024 Assistant Coach of the Year award at the NFL Honors ceremony for his efforts as the Detroit Lions offensive coordinator this past season. Johnson beat out the likes of coordinators like Detroit's Aaron Glenn, Philadelphia's Vic Fangio, Kansas City's Steve Spagnuolo, Buffalo's Joe Brady, and Minnesota's Brian Flores. Johnson was integral in the breaking out of former USC Trojans wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown and now leads former Trojan Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams.

The Detroit Lions scored 33.1 points per game this season, the most in the NFL. They also led the NFL in touchdowns per game with 4.1 scores on average. Only the Ravens averaged more yards per game. The Lions offense also placed three players on the All-Pro teams in center Frank Ragnow, right tackle Penei Sewell, and former USC Trojan wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown. Those three players, along with running back Jahmyr Gibbs, left tackle Taylor Decker, and quarterback Jared Goff, were also named to the Pro Bowl.

2024 Lions OC Ben Johnson wins Assistant Coach of the Year!

📺: #NFLHonors on FOX & NFLN
📱: Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/UTIyUkCSS3
— NFL (@NFL) February 7, 2025

"Listen, it's no secret that I was being portrayed as an offensive guru…..Whether I was quality control, position coach, tight end coach, receivers coach, coordinator, I'm whatever the job requires me to be.” Ben Johnson said when during his initial press conference in Chicago. "And so that's where I really wanted to let those people know on every call that I had, that there was more substance than maybe I articulated in any media session or what you might see on the sideline."

MORE: Elite Five-Star Recruit Brandon Arrington Compares USC Trojans To Alabama

MORE: USC General Manager Chad Bowden Reveals Why He Left Notre Dame, Marcus Freeman

MORE: USC Trojans' Rob Ryan's Viral Rant Compares Lincoln Riley To Sean McVay

Johnson's words signal his grind from the bottom to the very top of the chain of command, but also that he’s a true assistant and servant. Where other coaches may have been able to use previous success as a player or prior relationships to begin in a much more substantial professional role, Johnson built his way up from the ground floor to the assistant coach of the year and now a head coach.

Johnson has reaped the benefits financially as well. The first-year head coach reportedly signed a six-year, $65 million contract with the Chicago Bears after accepting the job, beginning to assemble his staff. The deal made Johnson the seventh-highest-paid head coach in the league and places his annual salary above established coaches such as Baltimore's John Harbaugh, Detroit's Dan Campbell, Minnesota's Kevin O’Connell, Buffalo's Sean McDermott, Philadelphia's Nick Sirriani, and others.

The Assistant Coach of the Year, Former Lions OC Ben Johnson #NFLHonors pic.twitter.com/SUqN3ELnit
— NFL GameDay (@NFLGameDay) February 7, 2025

Johnson has come a long way in a relatively short amount of time, but he’s done it the hard way.

MORE: What USC Trojans' JuJu Watkins Said About Caitlin Clark Jersey Retirement, Iowa Loss

MORE: Chicago Bears' Caleb Williams Named NFL's Most Stylish Player by GQ

MORE: USC Trojans’ Lincoln Riley Claims 'Best In Country' Hires: Chad Bowden, Zaire Turner, Dre Brown

MORE: USC Trojans Commit Brandon Lockhart Recruiting Georgia Commit Vance Spafford To Flip