Bears' Ben Johnson Calls Jared Goff to Clear the Air on Friendly Jab at Lions QB

Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson is a serious guy, especially when it comes to football. His face appears trapped in a look of dissatisfaction for the entire 60 minutes of every football game he coaches, and that tends to carry over into his press conferences, too. It’s understandable then how a small joke can be taken the wrong way when Johnson delivers it in a deadpan manner.

That’s what happened on Tuesday in a postgame press conference, after the Bears' wild Week 3 upset win over the Eagles. In response to a question about quarterback Case Keenum’s lack of mobility, especially compared to Caleb Williams, Johnson nodded once and said, “Well, I’ve got a little history with that, calling plays for someone not so mobile. But I don’t have a history with someone who’s not a No. 1 pick though, and that was apparently a big deal.”

The Bears media members in the room chuckled, and it seemed fairly obvious that Johnson, who’s never given us reason to believe he holds any animosity for anyone from his former team, least of all an old friend, took a friendly jab at Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff, who is known as a traditional, less mobile player. It should have been especially obvious given Johnson's follow-up response, mocking the fascination with his QB history.

Ben Johnson wouldn't insult the men he'd grown so close to in his former job

Unfortunately, as is too often the case, social media tends to twist the words of athletes and coaches and create narratives. A vocal minority of Lions fans took offense to what Johnson said, and they made sure everyone knew about it. The hubbub got big enough that Ben Johnson apparently reached out to Jared Goff to confirm that there were no hard feelings.

Goff appeared on teammate Amon-Ra St. Brown’s podcast and revealed that Johnson called him on Wednesday morning and officially cleared the air. “(Ben) called me this morning and was like 'Dude, you know that means nothing.’”

Goff confirmed that he knew from the first time he heard Johnson’s remark that it was a good-natured dig, not anything malicious. However, Goff added a comment of his own that might make Bears fans want to pay attention to his press conferences going forward. After laughing off Johnson’s comments, Goff added, “I’ll have to throw something his way at some point. Then I’ll call him and be like, ‘You know I’m just kidding.’”

The Bottom Line

Everyone who watched Ben Johnson's press conference with a lick of common sense knew that he was teasing his old friend, but it's good to see that he does value those old relationships enough to reach out and ensure that no one was hurt by what he said.

All jokes aside, Johnson needs also to make sure that Goff and the Lions don’t get the last laugh in Week 12. That’s the first time the Bears and Lions meet this season, and the Bears are in desperate need of vengeance. Bears fans will remember that humiliating Week 2 loss to the Lions last year at Ford Field, and their loss at Soldier Field in Week 18, to boot. If they’re to be taken seriously as a legit Super Bowl contender, the Bears must get at least one win against the 2023 and 2024 NFC North champs.

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