The Bears entered 2024 with hype and optimism, only to watch rookie QB Caleb Williams shift thrice under three OC schemes and two head coaches. From offensive coordinators Shane Waldron’s quick-fix approach to Thomas Brown’s midseason patchwork, the offensive identity never gelled. In between, head coach Matt Eberflus was fired on November 29—the franchise’s first midseason dismissal—leaving Williams navigating constant change instead of consistent guidance.

Caleb echoed that turmoil, famously saying, “No one tells me what to watch. I just turn it (film tape) on,” with no coaching direction. ESPN reports highlighted that he often self-studied film because nobody walked him through it. The result? A league-high 68 sacks and a quarterback struggling to trust the play design on protection. But it wasn’t just limited to poor coaching. Nope.

Folks out there pointed out that Williams held onto the ball too long, a habit that helped rack up a league-high number of sacks. Maybe the right coaching could have helped him? Of course. And Bears legend Brian Urlacher is right on board with this. Urlacher recently noted that Williams is going to be really good under Ben Johnson this year, no doubt. But if he were in a different position last year, he could have thrived in his rookie season as well.

“You know, I think if you maybe put him (Caleb) in a different position, different situation last year, I think he could have been rookie of the year,” Urlacher explained. He used Jayden Daniels of the Commanders and Bo Nix of the Broncos to back up his statement. “You know, what (Kliff) Kingsbury did with Jayden Daniels at the Redskins (Commanders) and what Bo Nix did with Sean Payton in Denver,” the Bears legend added.

Daniels and Nix had one thing in common—they both had a great coaching staff. Daniels, under the guidance of the offensive guru Kliff Kingsbury, thrived and went on to become the Offensive Rookie of the Year, all while leading the Commanders to the NFC Championship round. Nix, on the other hand, ended the Broncos’ playoff drought after almost a decade under Sean Payton’s guidance. Caleb Williams? Well, that’s the messier part.

With Caleb leading the offense, the Bears ranked among the worst teams in the NFL last year, enduring a 10-game losing streak. Williams had a terrible rookie season, and no doubt he failed to make any significant impact throughout the 2024 campaign, despite being a No. 1 draft pick. But fast forward to now, and this might be Caleb’s year. Why?

For starters, the Bears are finally looking like a real team—and more importantly, they just hired offensive mastermind Ben Johnson as their new head coach.

Brian Urlacher loves the hiring of Ben Johnson

The Bears hired the former Lions offensive coordinator, Ben Johnson, as their next head coach after a trainwrecked season under Eberflus. And with Caleb Williams getting ready for his second season, the folks out there believe that this Coach Johnson will do a great job with Williams and the Bears. And yes, the Bears legend, Brian Urlacher, is one of ’em.

“Ben Johnson is the man. I love that hire,” Urlacher said. “I think he will do a great job with Caleb. They got some talent on the signing some guys up front to protect Caleb, and they’ve always had the receiver. So, I think that’s gonna be a good thing.” Johnson helped the Lions lead the league in scoring (33.2 points per game) and helped the team achieve its highest PPG in franchise history. So, when Urlacher and the other analysts say that Johnson will do a good job, then they aren’t just talking the talk.

After all, there was a time when the Bears were defined by a disciplined, defensive identity and a consistent presence in playoff contention. That was under the leadership of Lovie Smith. Smith had an 81-63 record with three playoff appearances and a Super Bowl run back in the 2006 season when they lost to Peyton Manning’s team. But then Smith failed to qualify for the playoffs five times in his last six years as the Bears’ head coach. And just like that, Chicago decided to fire Smith. And since then, the Bears have been in turmoil.

They’ve used six head coaches in 11 years, along with a quarterback carousel over the years. QBs like Jay Cutler, Mitch Trubisky, Andy Dalton, and Justin Fields came and went, but the result? Just two playoff appearances. And now that Caleb Williams is gearing up for his second season, and Ben Johnson is at the helm, we’ll see if the Bears will manage to put the shoe on the other foot in the 2025 season.