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Bear Digest

Ben Johnson's Mike Ditka Side Shows in Bears' Romp Past Jets

Analysis: The Bears were in throwback mode and possessed the ball against the ball possessors while their coach fired shots over the bow of the media.
Gene Chamberlain|
Kyle Monangai enabled the Bears to possess the ball for more than 42 minutes despite two turnovers.
Kyle Monangai enabled the Bears to possess the ball for more than 42 minutes despite two turnovers. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

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Chicago Bears



The old-timers who saw Sunday's 23-12 Bears domination of the New York Jets had to think they'd seen it all before, right down to the final 18-play, 9:09 drive simply to kill off the clock and frustrate their opponents.

That was Stanky leg Ben Johnson calling the plays but this was a Mike Ditka style victory. It seemed that vintage, anyway. It came complete with the postgame media beatdown.

There was Kyle Monangai pounding it for 146 yards on 30 carries in classic 1980s Bears style. They ran the ball 54 times. The 89 plays were enough to wear out your own offense let alone have the Jets defense gasping for air and pleading to get off the field.

It didn't matter who the quarterback was, first string, second string, third string disguised as the day's passer, whatever. The identity was irrelevant of the guy handing off or throwing to the wide-open receiver who defenders couldn't focus on because they were worried about getting the ball stuffed down their throats by another run.

The game belonged to the line, the tight ends blocking and making shorter catches, and to Johnson. The Bears coach didn't much appreciate the way everyone wanted to call the game's starting QB before he told them who it would be, so he threw everyone a curve ball and put Tyson Bagent at receiver and inserted Case Keenum for one opening play at his own 6-yard line. Then he flipped it and pulled Keenum from the game. Bagent went on to throw for 268 yards on 25 of 34, did throw an interception and three others that were wiped out by penalties, and in general helped fill gaps between the next series of running plays.

"I thought it was great," Bagent said about the very first play. "Ben was kind of was hinting to it all week, while kind of being unsure of the exact play that he would call. But I think it's good eye candy for the defense when we do get into weird personnel like that, which he does a lot, just running a normal play by giving the defense another little thing to look at."

It only gained 2 yards as D'Andre Swift took the ball up the middle but Johnson had his different starter than the media had been reporting it would be and he could hang this over their heads. The gloat was obvious.

"I got all these memos saying that Tyson was starting before I ever made an announcement, so I wanted to get Case out there the first time," Johnson said.
"It was like a ceremonial first pitch out there. Handing off the torch."

Reporters who were among those reporting prematurely who would start seemed glum. Johnson was then informed that thanks to his little stunt Case Keenum now would get credit for the victory in a start even though he didn't even play the QB spot after the first play.

"Good for him," Johnson quickly blurted, like he had been itching to say it. "I think the team gets credit for a win."

As much like Ditka in one of his media scrums as this sounded, Johnson should have ended the statement with: "Get your mouth shut! See that buddy, that's your IQ!"

It didn't matter if it was Bagent or Keenum or Caleb Williams or Mike Tomczak and Jim Harbaugh at QB. The Bears simply tore the Jets to pieces with throwback, smash-mouth football and even when Bagent threw his bad interception to Minkah Fitzpatrick in the second quarter they simply went back to work possessing the ball with Monangai's runs.

The goal-line stand the Jets threw at them on the first drive to end a 93-yard drive didn't deter them. They hit the occasional big pass to Rome Odunze, then ran some more. Eighteen plays and 60 yards ended the game. It was a drive of 9:16, counting the kickoff. The Jets were gasping for air and entirely disinterested by game's end.

You can still win games in the NFL this way if you can pull off 42:45 of posssession time to 17:15 for the opponent. There's no need for miracle Iceman comebacks when this happens. No need for a punter either. It's a good thing Tory Taylor came on to hold for placement five times or he wouldn't have had a role in the game. The Bears didn't punt in a game for the first time since Marc Trestman was coach in 2014.

"That team, the Jets, they were No. 1, No. 2 in possession coming into this game," Johnson said. "So we were highly aware of that. We knew it could be one of those games where both teams have minimal possessions and we have to maximize all of that.

"And so to see our guys control the ball the way that they did I thought that was really huge as well."

Monangai did hurt his thumb bouncing around and off of tacklers. They gave up a 58-yard pass for a TD to Geno Smith, too, once the lead was 23-6 in the fourth quarter. The defense made sure there were no more TDs. They have allowed teams into the end zone only twice in the last 11 quarters.

Ball control works two ways, get the ball and then keep it away.

"Shout out to the defense," Bagent said. "They did a great job. They shut them out completely on third down (0-for-7)."

Doing something similar in Green Bay next week would be much more difficult because they had the home advantage with noise Sunday. It would take something even more like the 1980s Bears used to pull off with regularity.

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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.

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