The Lions' Ben Johnson has the 'fire' to be a head coach — and Caleb Williams could be part of the allure
ALLEN PARK, Mich. — Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson was standing on the sideline on Thanksgiving and heard the way the football zipped out of Bears quarterback Caleb Williams' right hand.
“You could hear the ball whistle by you,” he said Thursday before Lions practice. “He’s got quite a fastball, and has some creativity to him to extend plays and is accurate down the field as well.
“I haven’t really dove in and can’t tell you much more beyond that, but he’s been impressive from afar.”
Johnson will soon get a chance to see Williams from up close, and not just because the Bears host the Lions on Sunday. He’ll be the pre-eminent offensive play-caller on the NFL’s head coaching market this offseason and will be one of the Bears’ top targets.
Williams, the former No. 1 overall pick, will be the Bears’ selling point.
“There’s no question this guy’s talented,” Johnson said.
The same can be said of the 38-year-old Johnson, whose offense has rampaged through the NFL this season, scoring a league-best 32.8 points per game.
Johnson has flirted with head coaching positions before, but this might be the offseason he jumps. He’s more prepared to do so than ever before.
“I think there’s a burning desire in every man to find what he’s made out of, push the limits and see if you’ve got what it takes,” he said. “There’s a fire there.
“Now when that time is, I don’t know when that will be.”
He interviewed for five head coaching jobs last offseason: the Commanders, Seahawks, Panthers, Chargers and Falcons. Two days after the Lions lost the NFC title game, he withdrew from the Commanders’ and Seahawks’ searches. The Commanders were on their way to interview Johnson, who was considered the favorite for the job, and Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn when they found out.
In 2023, he declined to meet with the Panthers in person when he was among their top choices.
“I’d say I’m much more prepared than I was the last two years. …” Johnson said. “The last couple years, getting thrown into the coordinator role, things get on you fast and you don’t really have time to think about the future a whole lot. Now that I’ve been through the wringer a couple times, had some interviews, I certainly do feel more prepared, just from a big-picture standpoint.”
A former walk-on quarterback at North Carolina, Johnson began his coaching career at Boston College, the alma mater of Bears GM Ryan Poles. He worked for the Dolphins from 2012-18, eventually coaching tight ends and receivers, before becoming the Lions’ offensive quality control coach in 2019.
He coached tight ends for two years before being named the passing game coordinator. He took over play-calling when Anthony Lynn was fired midway through the 2021 season.
Thursday, Johnson said the business at hand was more important than a future job search. The 12-2 Lions would be the top seed in the NFC playoffs, and receive a first-round bye, were the season to end today.
“Honestly, this is why I wanted to be here,” he said. “I have an obligation to people in the building to be right where my feet are. When I walk in and I see the coaches staying long nights and working as hard as they’re doing, and I come in and I see the guys, the players, in the meeting room and on the practice field attacking each day like they are, it’s hard for my mind to wander much beyond what we’re doing in the here and now.”
Glenn figures to be targeted for head coaching interviews this offseason, too, though giving up 48 points to the Bills on Sunday undoubtedly hurt the buzz surrounding him. Glenn said Williams will be "a damn good player in this league,” and shook his head at what he said were unfair narratives about the rookie.
“He’s very resilient,” he said. “There’s no quit in that player. It’s that the narrative that so many people want to put on someone when they don’t really know who they are. That’s funny to me, and that happens to a lot of these young quarterbacks that’s in this league. They get beat down so much that people really don’t see the things they go through to be a top player — especially a No. 1 pick.”