Following a wild Saturday night 22-16 win over the Packers and a Sunday afternoon loss by the Detroit Lions to the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Chicago Bears are officially in the playoffs (you can read that again).
But despite all the reason to celebrate, Ben Johnson barely paused to acknowledge it. Instead, the Bears’ head coach delivered a message that felt intentional, calculated, and revealing: this was simply step one.
“We felt pretty good about 11 being the number,” Johnson said. “That was step one. Step two is we want to win this division. We want to have at least one home playoff game. And then step three would be clinching the number one seed.”
That framing says everything about where the Bears believe they are, and where Johnson believes they should be headed.
“This is a signature moment for us,” second year quarterback Caleb Williams said after the Packers win. “To be in the position we are with 11 wins and everything at the tip of our fingers is exactly where we want to be.”
Why This Playoff Run Isn’t Like 2020
GettyBears Tight End Cole Kmet
The last time Chicago made the postseason was 2020. Now only three players from that roster are still on the Bears: Cole Kmet, Jaylon Johnson, and Cairo Santos.
Kmet sees the difference immediately. “As a rookie, you don’t know any better,” he said. “This does feel a little different. It feels like we’ve got a lot of things going on right now that can carry over throughout the rest of the year.”
The Bears have won 11 of their last 13 games. They’ve won the turnover battle a league high 10 times and they’re 10-0 in those games. In fact, after going 6-20 in one score games over the previous three seasons combined, Chicago is 7-2 in those situations this year.
Even further, they’ve won six games after trailing in the final two minutes of the fourth quarter, the most in a single season since the 1970 merger.
Ben Johnson Isn’t Letting Anyone Get Comfortable
GettyChicago Bears celebrate after 22-16 win over Green Bay
Ben Johnson’s postgame comments weren’t about celebrating the clinch. They were about what nearly went wrong. He openly blamed himself for late game miscues. Pointed out penalties. Broke down protection errors.
“We’re still not playing at the level we’re capable of yet,” Johnson said. “That’s the beautiful thing about this season.” That message has been consistent all year. The Bears aren’t perfect (far from it). But they are improving, and they are accountable.
Yes the Bears have already clinched a playoff spot, however, there’s still plenty to play for, and Johnson made that clear. These final two weeks against the 49ers and Lions should not be taken lightly. “There’s still a lot out there to play for,” he said. “Our guys know that.”
He continued by saying: “We want to be playing a playoff game in front of them,” Johnson said. “To earn that right, we’ve got to win this division.”
The Bears are officially in the playoffs, but under Ben Johnson, simply getting there was never the goal.
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