Ben Johnson sweepstakes adds spice to Lions-Commanders playoff game and Bears coach search

A lot of Bears fans probably are rooting for Ben Johnson but not for the Lions against the Commanders in their divisional playoff game Saturday night at Ford Field.

Johnson, the coordinator of the Lions’ top-ranked scoring offense, is the favored candidate in the Bears’ coaching search. But the deeper the Lions go into the playoffs, the more complicated his candidacy becomes. If the Lions lose, the Bears can have an in-person second interview with Johnson on Monday. If the Lions win, they’d have to wait until Jan. 27. As Bears president Kevin Warren surely knows, a week is a lifetime in a coaching search.

With the Bears also courting Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy among other popular candidates who could have other options, the Bears’ search could turn into a chess game and a poker game all in one — where balancing aggressiveness and patience can be tricky.

If the Lions win and delay Johnson’s interview availability, do the Bears pounce on McCarthy and hire a proven coach with Super Bowl ring and a history of good quarterback development? Do they wait on Johnson, who could be the next Kyle Shanahan or Sean McVay, and risk coming in second and having to go to Plan B — or even Plan C? Do they aggressively pursue Johnson with back-channel negotiations and all but finalize a deal prior to the second interview — as the 49ers did with Shanahan during the Falcons’ run to the Super Bowl in 2017?

Or do they play the long game and patiently consider the 19 candidates they’ve indentified who still are available?

The Bears have interviewed 12 candidates, including former Seahawks coach Pete Carroll, Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn, former Panthers and Commanders coach Ron Rivera, former Stanford coach David Shaw and Cardinals offensive coordinator Drew Petzing. Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken is expected to interview with the Bears on Friday.

They are expected to interview other popular candidates, including Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores and Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady. The Bears have requested an interview with Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury, but he reportedly has decided to wait until after the Commanders’ playoff run to do job interviews.

So Bears fans likely are rooting for a Lions loss to the Commanders (7 p.m., Fox 32) — preferably one where Johnson’s offense is not the culprit. But that also will come with some discomfort, because it would put the Commanders with coach Dan Quinn and quarterback Jayden Daniels in the NFC Championship Game — a year after a the Commanders were 4-13 and well behind the Bears in pursuit of relevance.

That’s Dan Quinn — the coach Bears general manager Ryan Poles interviewed when Poles was hired as GM in 2022, only to hire Matt Eberflus. And that’s Jayden Daniels, who was chosen one pick after the Bears took Caleb Williams with the No. 1 overall in the 2024 draft, and made the Pro Bowl as a rookie. Daniels completed 69% of his passes for 3,568 yards, 25 touchdowns and nine interceptions for a 100.1 passer rating.

And while Bears fans are hoping Williams can leapfrog Daniels in Year 2 with a new coach and a new offense, Daniels is compiling evidence beyond his stats that he could be tough to top if he stays healthy — with a knack for rising to the occasion.

He outdueled Joe Burrow in his third NFL game. He threw the Hail Mary pass that beat the Bears. He threw three touchdowns in the fourth quarter to beat the Eagles. And converted two clutch third-down plays in the final minute to upset the Buccaneers in the wild-card game last week.

If Daniels had done all of that for the Bears, he’d be hailed by Bears fans as the next Patrick Mahomes. He’s still a long way from that. But he’s getting closer. And if Daniels takes the next step and upsets the Lions, Bears fans will gladly tip their cap — and look forward to the Bears’ second interview with Ben Johnson.

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