For the past three years, Ben Johnson helped Jared Goff become one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. Outcast by the league’s god of quarterbacks Sean McVay with the Los Angeles Rams, Goff’s strengths were emphasized by Johnson as he led the Detroit Lions to the NFC Championship in 2023 and a 15-2 record in 2024.
But while Johnson has aided Goff, he also knows his limitations. Goff doesn’t have the high-end athleticism as some of the other quarterbacks in the NFL and a lot of the focus has been the weapons around him such as Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jahmyr Gibbs, David Montgomery and Jameson Williams.
It’s a reason why Johnson admitted he was excited for his new job as head coach of the Chicago Bears and the opportunity to work with Caleb Williams but may have taken some jabs at Goff and the Lions defense in the process.
Ben Johnson’s Praise For Caleb Williams Turned Into a Slight to Lions
Johnson was speaking about his new quarterback when he was addressing reporters at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis on Tuesday. While he meant to emphasize Williams’s ability to extend plays, his former quarterback may have caught a stray with his comments.
“Out of structure, the off-schedule, the creation…that’s what stands out the most because that’s really the way that this league is going right now,” Johnson said about Williams. “It seems like as much as you want to make it pure progression, one to two to three, there’s just too much variety. The pass rush is coming down and to have an athlete like Caleb extend the play and potentially find an explosive down the field. That’s what gets me going a little bit. I get excited thinking about that because I haven’t been around that since I’ve been in the league.”
Goff catching strays on his day off smh. pic.twitter.com/Vxw0IrvY74
— Eazy (@SpeakEZsports_) February 25, 2025
Johnson’s comments make sense when you compare the two quarterbacks. Williams plays a different style than Goff, who is a traditional pocket passer. While Williams can move outside of the pocket and extend a play, that play ends if the pocket collapses on Goff. It’s why Goff had an average time to throw of 2.71 seconds (16th among 43 qualifying quarterbacks) compared to Williams’s 3.04 seconds (39th) according to Pro Football Focus last season.
But while most football fans could see the difference, Johnson also noted that it was frustrating to watch his defense go against quarterbacks like Williams.
“I’ve been on the other side, and I’ve experienced it,” Johnson continued. “It’s demoralizing when you’re on the other side and you’re watching that happen to your defense.”
Once again, Johnson is stating the obvious between the quarterbacks' two skill sets. But he may have thrown an intentional slight at Goff, considering how easy it could be to prepare for a traditional pocket passer compared to an improviser like Williams.
The collective radar of Lions fans also goes up when mentioning the defense. Johnson may have felt he did his job guiding Detroit to 31 points in their divisional round playoff loss to the Washington Commanders, but the defense allowed 45 points. There were also a few trick plays including an interception by Williams that didn’t go Johnson’s way before he packed his bags and went to Chicago.
Johnson has already been petty enough to throw a stray at one division rival since joining the Bears but would he be bold enough to throw one at his former employer? It’s hard to know but for Lions fans, it’s another way Johnson has been a thorn in their side since taking his new job.