Bears proved just how much has changed in 2025 with this sequence of plays in Week 11

Bears coach Ben Johnson proved he has ushered in a new era in Chicago with this sequence of play calls in Week 11.

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The Chicago Bears are 7-3 and sitting atop the NFC North after Week 11, which is something that's probably forced Bears fans to pinch themselves to believe.

However, the Ben Johnson effect is very, very real. No pinches required.

Johnson has the Bears offense humming, just not the way most analysts expected. Sure, Caleb Williams is enjoying a much-improved second season (there's a good chance he'll be the first Bears quarterback to throw for 4,000 yards in a season), and the deeper analytics prove how much Johnson's tutelage has helped the 2024 first-overall pick.

Here are some nuggets that ESPN's Dan Orlovsky shared on X:

- 80.0 QBR using play action (3rd-highest in NFL)

- 795 Pass yds from under center (4th-most in NFL)

Development, indeed.

MORE: Bears earn fantastic new label after Week 11 win over Vikings

But where Johnson has really had a positive impact on the 2025 Chicago Bears is in the running game, where Chicago continues to lean on the combination of veteran D'Andre Swift and rookie Kyle Monanangai to put the team's offense in favorable positions.

And in Week 11 against the Minnesota Vikings, the Bears leaned on the running game to put them in position to win the game. It was a sequence of plays on the final drive that proved these aren't the same old Bears.

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"We were right on the fringe of where we felt comfortable with Cairo, and we know every five yards from there on out is a huge deal in terms of make percentage," Johnson said. "Our guys up front, they did a nice job getting us nine yards. We needed all nine of those nine yards to feel really good about the spot that we were in. Had we been able to get the first down there, then maybe we can run it a couple more times and get even a little bit closer. But I think we handled the situation really well."

MORE: NFC North standings see massive shakeup after Bears’ heart-stopping win over Vikings

What a difference a year makes.

The 2024 Bears never would've trusted the offensive line to do their job well enough to get the chunk yards needed for Cairo Santos to drill the game-winner.

But these aren't the 2024 Chicago Bears.

MORE: PFF Grades are in: Here's who led the Bears on offense in Week 11 vs. Vikings

"I have a lot of confidence in those guys," Johnson said of the offensive line. "In the second half, we did create some running lanes and our backs took advantage of that, so we felt comfortable running in that situation."

Kudos to general manager Ryan Poles for assembling an offensive line that can finally be trusted. Key offseason additions Joe Thuney, Drew Dalman, and Jonah Jackson have paid massive dividends through the first 10 games of 2025. And now that we're entering the part of the NFL schedule where weather plays a bigger role in the outcome of games, the O-line will be even more important to keep the team's playoff hopes alive.

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