Ben Johnson Aiming for Jared Goff to Have Best Season of His Entire Career
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After receiving new responsibilities midway through last season, Ben Johnson got the big promotion at the end of the year.
Starting 2021 as the Detroit Lions tight ends coach, Johnson was bumped to passing game coordinator midway through the season, when head coach Dan Campbell took over the play-calling duties.
He was promoted once again in the offseason, this time to offensive coordinator. Now, he’s responsible for making sure the unit is clicking as it was at the end of last season. A big part of that will be the success of quarterback Jared Goff.
After beginning the season in a downward spiral, Goff rebounded from the stretch of struggles with a solid finish to the season. Over his final six games, all with Campbell calling the plays, Goff threw 11 touchdowns, against just two interceptions.
As Johnson takes over the offensive coordinator role, he is focused on making sure that Goff is as good as he’s ever been. The two have spent time one-on-one together, trying to crack the code of what can make Goff reach his full potential.
“I’ve got a really strong relationship with Jared right now, and one of my top priorities personally is to help him have the best season of his career,” Johnson said. “One thing that we've done is included him a lot and what we're trying to do schematically, and so we spent some time this offseason watching more of the stuff of what he did a few years ago in LA, and how can we incorporate some of that, while also challenging him to take the next step, in some areas of improvement.”
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Fans and pundits alike have wondered whether Goff will be the long-term solution as the Lions signal-caller. The 2023 draft class is poised to be full of potential answers, making this year a pivotal one for Detroit’s incumbent starter.
Johnson is looking to help his current leader continue getting comfortable, which has led to the team revisiting what made Goff be successful during his time with the Los Angeles Rams.
“At the end of the day, we want to do what our quarterback does well,” Johnson said. “And so, I think we look back at his time in LA. He was really successful with certain schemes and certain concepts. And, we're just going to look to incorporate some of those a little bit more I know. Play-action is something he's really good at.”
Johnson as ‘ready as possible’ to call plays
Despite Johnson being promoted to offensive coordinator, he has not officially been announced as the team’s play-caller. Campbell pulled the strings for the final nine games of the year last season, and has not made it public whether he or his new coordinator will do so in the fall.
Throughout the offseason, Johnson has been preparing in case he is the one chosen. He’s never been a play-caller at the professional level, but he remains ready.
“I think even though I’ve never done it at this level, it’s something that’s always on your mind,” Johnson said. “I’ve done it in practice, back in my days in Miami. So, it’s not unfamiliar to me, being in a pressure moment and trying to dial something up. So, we’ll see what direction coach wants to go. I know mentally I’m going to be as ready as I possibly can be, without having actually done that.”
In evaluating himself, Johnson feels ready to take the reins of the offense. While the decision isn’t his, he feels a certain air of confidence.
“I honestly feel I'm confident, I'm ready, you know, I really am,” Johnson said. “Once again, you got to be put in those situations to truly know. But, our game-planning process is so detailed and precise that I think on gameday, it takes care of itself. You know, because you know exactly what you want, where you want it. But, it's just really reading the sheet. In my opinion, the five percent that gets hard is the end of the game (and) the end-of-the-half situations where the clock is running. You got to think quickly. And, those are actually the situations I have experienced from my time in Miami, doing that practice with some more guys.”
Improving in the red zone
An area the Lions struggled in consistently on offense was in the red zone. In 2021, Detroit struggled to put six points on the board upon entering the opponent’s 20-yard line.
This season, Johnson and company are finding ways to correct the wrongs that the team dealt with in the red zone a season ago.
“Our run efficiency dropped off tremendously when we hit the red zone,” Johnson said. “We talk about that. Number one, running the ball still has to be a staple for us, and it gets more challenging the tighter you get.”
The Lions’ offensive coordinator explained some of the metrics describing the red-zone struggles, including the fact that the team went from 50 percent efficiency to under 20 percent just around the red zone.
Now, the team is looking for ways to fix it.
“We’ve got to take a hard look at what we have as a coaching staff, to make sure that scheme wise, we’re putting ourselves in a good situation,” Johnson said. “It’s gonna be hammered home to the players. We haven’t hit the red zone yet, but that’s gonna be our starting point right there. The windows become so much tighter down there that it’s the precision, the trust, the confidence, the details. It’s all that stuff in the passing game.”
