Why losing Ben Johnson doesn’t close Lions Super Bowl window

It’s official now. Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell knew it would happen, and at least one of the dominos known as his coaching staff has fallen: Ben Johnson has been hired as the next head coach of the Chicago Bears.

The decision marked a huge move in the right direction for the Bears as they look to quickly rebound from the disastrous Matt Eberflus era and get as much competency around former No. 1 overall pick, quarterback Caleb Williams, as possible.

In Johnson, the Bears are getting just that, at least on paper, and at least on offense. Johnson will have to prove that he can translate his immense success as an offensive coordinator to being a head coach in the NFL — and many great coordinators have failed that task in the past — but the numbers around Johnson should have Bears fans excited.

The Lions were second behind only Lamar Jackson’s Baltimore Ravens in yards per game with 409.5. They led the league in points per game at 33.2. Johnson’s offense was second in the league only to Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase, and the Cincinnati Bengals’ offense in passing stats. The Bengals put up 272.9 yards per game through the air while Chase won the receiver triple crown. Meanwhile, the Lions put up 263.2 yards per game through the air.

That’s all great news for the Bears and Williams, but it’s a tough loss for the Lions — who were the beneficiary of Johnson’s creativity and boldness as a play-caller.

Campbell and the Lions are now smarting for two reasons. Not only did they get unexpectedly kicked in the teeth by the Washington Commanders at home as a one seed, but now what looked to be a team that could compete for multiple Super Bowls is now 0-2 in that department over the last two postseasons, and they just lost arguably their best asset.

It seems that way, at least, but according to Campbell, the Lions’ Super Bowl window is far from closed. For one, he believes the loss to the Commanders will make his locker room even more hungry for success.

“I know the guys, [the loss] eats away at [them],” Campbell said on Monday, according to Eric Woodyard of ESPN. “I know the right guys — they’re our guys for a reason and that’s what will always give me hope and let me know we’re only going to be better.”

It’s all about the core for Campbell, and he believes that the Lions still have the right pieces despite their disappointing exit from the 2024-25 playoffs.

“I think the most important thing is you want to know you’ve got your culture, you’ve got your identity, and you’ve got players that fit into that, and we’ve got that,’ Campbell said. “And we’ve got players in every pivotal position you can ask for to have success and those guys are made the right way, so, absolutely, our window is open.”

Dan Campbell and the Lions still have a Super Bowl core