Bears Players Are All-In On Ben Johnson’s Mentality Heading Into 2026

One of Johnson’s top offensive players agrees: it’s time to start over from scratch this coming season.

Jan 10, 2026; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bears running back D'Andre Swift (4) runs runs after the catch as Green Bay Packers defensive end Kingsley Enagbare (55) defends during the second half of an NFC Wild Card Round game at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn Images | Matt Marton-Imagn Images

To many Chicago Bears fans, and even some former players, all the team has to do after their strong 11-6 campaign in 2025 is “build on” their success. Get Caleb Williams more experience in the offense, shore up the defensive line, and you’re basically good to go, right?

That’s not what Ben Johnson said after the season.

“There is no building off of this,” Johnson said during the Bears’ end-of-year press conference. “We go back to square one. We’re back at the bottom again. That’s really all 32 teams. If you feel otherwise, you’re probably missing the big picture.”

It’s not necessarily a new sentiment that we’ve heard from coaches, having heard it from Johnson’s old boss, Dan Campbell, after the Detroit Lions fell in the NFC Championship game a few years ago. The truth is, you never know when you’ll be in that position again, because each year really is its own season.

Maybe that’s why Bears running back D’Andre Swift, who was also with Johnson and Campbell in Detroit, has bought in so quickly to that approach.

“That’s everything,” the veteran back told Adam Rank at the Super Bowl Media Week. “What we did last year is over with. You know what I mean? So, definitely gotta start from ground-zero, and then go back to work. Every year is different. You have to work even harder to get back to the point that we were and even go further.”

If you think about it, the Bears themselves are proof of that, as are the New England Patriots team playing in the Super Bowl.

The Bears won only five games last season. The Patriots won just four. But two new coaches and some roster improvements later, and they blew past every pre-season projection and have some of the brightest futures in the game, thanks to having two of the league’s best young quarterbacks.

But things can just as easily go south the year after achieving great success. Look no further than the Washington Commanders, who made the NFC Championship game in 2024 only to not even sniff the playoffs this season due to Jayden Daniels’ litany of injuries.

Nothing is given in the NFL, and everyone’s going to be gunning for the Bears in 2026. Injuries can derail their luck. Other teams can improve.

So, the idea that Johnson has the Bears starting from the bottom, like they’re back to being that squad that finished last in the division in 2024, has me even more ready to see what they cook up next year.

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