Ben Johnson Takes Subtle Jab at Common Narrative Surrounding Chicago Bears

All offseason long we've heard the narrative that the Chicago Bears are one of the top candidates to regress in 2026.

Chicago had an upstart season in the first year under head coach Ben Johnson after going 11-6, winning the NFC North and even a playoff game over the Green Bay Packers.

The Bears weren't a perfect team by any stretch. There is a lot for the Bears to clean up on both sides of the ball, and especially on defense, where Chicago thrived with turnovers that assisted in masking the unit's many struggles.

Before practice on Friday, Johnson took a subtle jab at those who are forecasting regression for the Bears in 2026 by pointing out the narrative, which he admitted is motivation for his team.

"Well, we're the No. 1 regression candidate, so I think we got plenty of motivation ourselves," Johnson said in response to a question about Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Liam Coen pointing to a lack of attention on his team being a source of motivation.

The reason it was brought up was because Coen's comments included a reference to how much attention Caleb Williams is getting on the league's official website.

"I look at the NFL website, and see if there's anything on the Jaguars," Coen stated. "I think I'll see 40 pictures of Caleb Williams. And nothing on us! It's beautiful."

Did Liam Coen take a shot at Caleb Williams?

Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Liam Coen speaks to members of the media after the first day of NFL Training Camp. — Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Liam Coen. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Some took that as a shot at Williams, but I'm not in that boat at all. Instead, this was simply Coen using an example of an overload in attention on one particular player instead of a wider view of the league. If anything, Coen was taking a shot at the media.

That said, Williams is a polarizing figure, is one of the rising stars at quarterback and plays in a big market, so getting a ton of attention comes with the territory

Speaking of that attention, Johnson said he has no concerns about Williams handling it well.

"We talked about Caleb in the past," Johnson said. "He's used to handling a lot of attention, so I'm not worried about that."

There is most definitely a possibility that the Bears could regress in 2026. In fact, regression has been a massive problem for this franchise over the last 20 years following first-place finishes.

But there is also plenty of room for growth, especially as it relates to Williams, which leads to hope that the Bears won't be victims of a pattern that has plagued the team since its last back-to-back postseason appearances in 2005 and 2006.

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