Bear Digest

Ben Johnson Details Reasons for His Coaching Staff Replacements

Press Taylor and Eric Studesville replaced Declan Doyle and Eric Bieniemy on the Bears coaching staff and Bears coach Ben Johnson likes his new staff's makeup.
Gene Chamberlain|
Press Taylor, new Bears offensive coordinator, has familiarity with Caleb Williams after being on the staff last year.
Press Taylor, new Bears offensive coordinator, has familiarity with Caleb Williams after being on the staff last year. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

Bears coach Ben Johnson went through the offseason losing only two essential coaches from his staff, and in today's NFL it's uncommon for any playoff team to be able to say this.

The chief problem with his losses were the individuals themselves, but Johnson is confident in his replacements regardless of social media reactions from fans in other cities. Replacing offensive coordinator Declan Doyle from within with Press Taylor definitely generated negative reaction from fans of Taylor's former teams, while the replacement of running backs coach Eric Bieniemy by Eric Studesville was made with less reaction. In Taylor's case, they maintain some uniformity for QB Caleb Williams since Taylor was Bears passing game coordinator last year.

"Let me start by saying this, you lose two really good coaches in Eric Bieniemy and Declan Doyle," Johnson said at the combine, in his first comments on his altered coaching staff. "I can’t say enough about either one of those two guys and the contributions that they made last year in their own way.

"I think we’ve been very much a proponent of wanting guys to move on and if they find another role or another job that they want to take a shot at, then I’m all for it. I think both those teams, both Kansas City and Baltimore, are getting two really phenomenal people and football coaches."

Doyle is now the Ravens' play-calling offensive coordinator, and Bieniemy is back in a role as Chiefs offensive coordinator after he held that job from 2018-22.

"When it comes to replacing them, I felt strongly about Eric Studesville," Johnson said of his new backs coach. "He’s a guy I’ve worked with in the past. I think he’ll do a great job in our running back room and bring some different things to the table."

Studesville, a Bears assistant under Dave Wannstedt and Dick Jauron, worked in Miami in 2017 and 2018 as running backs coach and run game coordinator when Johnson was on the staff under Adam Gase

He's definitely a different type of coach than the drill sergeant Bieniemy was with his small group of backs. Bieniemy was very effective stressing the importance of maintaining possession of the ball. The Bears had two lost footballs by running back D'Andre Swift last year and none by Kyle Monangai, and this stat alone is a positive they'd love to repeat under their new running backs coach. If they can be third again in rushing or close, there's little doubt they'd love this.

Studesville's backs with Miami last year fumbled four times and lost only one.

Taylor left a poor impression on Jaguars and Eagles fans, but his problems in the past largely came when he was a play-caller. Johnson calls them himself with the Bears.

"Press in particular was a guy that checked all the boxes of what I was looking for," Johnson said. "He did a phenomenal job last year. He’s very smart, very detailed, did some things behind the scenes that people probably don’t realize and I know he’s got the respect of these players.”

Maybe the toughest thing for Johnson was promoting Taylor from passing game coordinator when he also had veteran coaches Antwaan Randle El and J.T. Barrett on his staff. They also talked to Cardinals passing game specialist Connor Senger.

"For offensive coordinator, we went around and we interviewed outside of the building," Johnson said. "Certainly we have a number of guys in the building that I feel very strongly about as well. Not just Press."

The offensive coordinator role itself with the Bears is one often misunderstood because it doesn't involve calling plays.

"I'm not in every single staff meeting, I’m not in every single offensive meeting with the players," Johnson said. "I’m in as many of them that I can attend that time allows and so it’s just the understanding that nothing skips a beat when I have to leave the room.

"Press has been there, he’s done that. That’s the good thing about it. I hold him in really high regard. He’s done a phenomenal job in the role last year as pass game coordinator and I’ve got nothing but immense confidence that he’ll do a great job here as a coordinator.”

Taylor was never a play caller for the Eagles or in his one year with the Colts. When he went to the Jaguars, he wasn't initially doing it either with Doug Pederson as head coach.

However, he was given those duties in 2023 and 2024 and the results weren't positive. They were 13th in scoring and offense in 2023 but then 26th in scoring and 25th in yards gained under Taylor in 2023.

Taylor, younger brother of Bengals head coach Zac Taylor, even had split some play-calling responsibilities in 2022 when they were 10th in yards and scoring.

Again, this is largely irrelevant for the Bears because he won't call plays for Johnson.

Johnson described one of the other qualities he looked for in any coach he hires. This would include his friend, Will Lawing, who was added as an offensive analyst.

“I think when you put together a staff, that’s really what you want to do is you want to see, hey, can I picture the young coaches becoming position coaches?" Johnson said. "Can I picture some of the position coaches becoming coordinators and then possibly even head coaches one day.

"And I do I believe we’ve got some guys that fit that mold on really both sides of the ball. I’m fortunate to have that on this staff. Press in particular was a guy that checked all the boxes of what I was looking for. He did a phenomenal job last year. He’s very smart, very detailed, did some things behind the scenes that people probably don’t realize and I know he’s got the respect of these players.”

Attention to details was the calling card for all Bears coaches under Johnson last year. If they can get this from the new staff members, Johnson's staff will have a chance at duplicating or passing last year's production.

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.