1st-and-10: At least Ben Johnson lost being Ben Johnson

After a 17-16 loss to the Chargers at Soldier Field in 2019, Bears coach Matt Nagy appeared mystified and a little miffed at being questioned about his decision to have Mitch Trubisky kneel to set up Eddy Pineiro for a 41-yard field goal attempt that failed on the final play. Why not run another play to make it a little easier for the first-year kicker, who had previously hit the upright on a 33-yarder in that game? 

“I’m not even going to get into that,” Nagy huffed. “I had zero thought of running the football. I’m not taking the chance of fumbling the football, so you lose three or four yards.”

As for trying a pass … 

“Throw the football right then and there?, Nagy said, a bit incredulous. “What happens if you take a sack or there’s a fumble? … I’ll just be really clear. Zero thought of throwing the football. Zero thought of running the football. You understand me? That’s exactly what it was.” 

That Nagy's strategy failed was just part of the issue. The real red flag was that the conservative tack was not his style. Nagy was the reigning Coach of the Year in the NFL in part because he was aggressive and inventive, with trick plays and a funky formations and a mindset of putting pressure on the defense. But in a moment of extreme decision at 3-3 following a 12-4 rookie season, he suddenly was worried about the worst-case scenario. Similar to Marc Trestman’s sudden fear in 2013 when he had Robbie Gould attempt a 47-yard field goal on second down in overtime against the Vikings, rather than risk a fumble or penalty. 

But not so with Ben Johnson on the ill-fated fourth-and-one play that ended disastrously in the 28-21 loss to the Packers on Sunday at Lambeau Field when Caleb Williams’ pass was underthrown and intercepted by Packers cornerback Keisean Nixon in the end zone. The Bears could have run for the first down, called time out and taken a few shots at the end zone. 

But, unlike Nagy and Trestman before him, at least Johnson went down being Ben Johnson. A fourth-and-one pass with Williams on a second-half roll was hardly foolish. It’s what he does, and he has a track record of being good at it. Get used to it, because the only way the Bears are going to break this losing cycle — no playoff wins since 2010, just four since Mike Ditka was fired in 1992 — is for Johnson to be the best version of himself, staying in that sweet spot of being aggressive without being reckless.  

And so far, so good. The Bears’ 30th loss in their last 36 games against the Packers might have looked like the same old Chicago Bears to some, but even in defeat, Johnson left a calling card. Unlike previous Bears teams under Trestman, John Fox and Nagy, even the Packers have to sense that Ben Johnson's Bears aren’t going away. 

2a. I can't argue with Johnson's clock-management in the final 3:32 of the game. Johnson, in fact, correctly acknowledged — perhaps more than most coaches do — that the clock is as much of an opponent as the defense in those situations. That's a bigger factor in today's NFL, where with the new kickoff rule and 55+ range on field goals with the K-ball, teams can get into field-goal range in a couple of plays with any quarterback — not just Patrick Mahomes, Aaron Rodgers or Josh Allen.

In fact, that might have been the best argument to run the ball on the fourth-and-one. Had the Bears scored, the Packers would have had 22 seconds to win the game. That's enough time in today's game to get a field goal.

2b. While Johnson’s scheme and play-calling credentials are solid, his leadership and culture credentials will be tested in a prototypical “trap” game against the 3-10 Browns on Sunday. The Bears are coming off a tough loss to the rival Packers and Johnson already was looking ahead to next week’s rematch at Soldier Field during the lightning-quick post-game handshake with Matt LaFleur on Sunday at Lambeau Field. 

The Bears are 2-0 in games against non-division opponents following an NFC North showdown — beating the Cowboys 31-14 in Week 3 after losing to the Lions and beating the Steelers 31-28 in Week 12 after beating the Vikings. The Bears are 7 1/2-point favorites — the first time they’ve been favored by more than a touchdown since 2020, when they were 9 1/2-point favorites against the Jaguars on the road in Week 16, and won 41-17. 

3. Playoff picture: Even if the Bears (9-4) beat the Browns on Sunday, there’s a real possibility the Bears will have to win two of their final three games against the Packers (home), 49ers (road) and Lions (home) and finish 12-5 to make the playoffs. (There’s even a scenario where the Bears don’t make it at 12-5 if the Seahawks and Rams tie in Week 16). 

In the four seasons of the 17-game schedule with seven playoff teams in each conference, no team that finished 11-5 or better has missed the postseason. And only once has a team with 10 wins not made it — the 10-7 Seahawks last season. 

4a. The intrigue of D.J. Moore’s diminishing production reached an uncomfortable level against the Packers on Sunday, when he had one reception — an end-around pitch that lost four yards — on three targets with leading receiver Rome Odunze out. 

Moore has been the leading receiver on losing teams in his first seven NFL seasons, but has been the No. 2 receiver on a winning team this year — behind Rome Odunze. Sunday was his opportunity to step into a leading role. But instead, he had fewer downfield targets (two) than Olamide Zaccheaus (three). 

Moore, who had career-highs of 96 receptions for 1,364 yards, eight touchdowns and 80.2 yards per game in 2023 with the Bears, is on a pace for career lows of 51 receptions, 651 yards and 38.3 yards per game in 2025. 

4b. What makes Moore's downturn so mystifying is that he thrived in bad offenses with the Panthers and Bears — 18th or lower in points from 2019-24 — and now that he's finally in a top-10 offense (the Bears are eighth in points, fifth in yards) he often seems out of sync or overlooked.

And the lack of chemistry with Williams is equally confounding. Moore has 1,000 or more receiving yards from six different quarterbacks in his career, and no Hall of Famers — past-his-prime Cam Newton (1,135), Kyle Allen (1,081), Teddy Bridgewater (1,009), Sam Darnold (1,200), Justin Fields (1,109) and now Williams (1,464). He's one of only two receivers in NFL history to do that (Larry Fitzgerald is the other, and he has 17,492 career receiving yards; Moore has 8,029). It doesn't make sense that Moore is having compatibility or production issues in the best offense he's ever been in, with arguably the most talented quarterback he's ever played with.

5. The List: Unless Moore rallies spectacularly in the final four games, he will join a too-long list of Bears wide receivers who faded in their prime — only every Bears 1,000-yard receiver since Jeff Graham left for the Jets in free agency after a 1,301-yard season in 1995: Darnell Mooney (1,055 yards in 2021 to 414 in 2023 at 26); Allen Robinson (1,250 yards in 2020 to 410 yards in 2021 at 28); Alshon Jeffery (1,421 yards in 2013 to 821 yards in 2016 at 26); Brandon Marshall (1,508 yards in 2012 to 721 yards in 2014 at 30); Marty Booker (1,189 yards in 2002 to 715 yards in 2003 at 27); Marcus Robinson (1,400 yards in 1999 to 244 yards in 2002 at 27); and Curtis Conway (1,049 yards in 1996 to 426 yards in 1999 at 28). 

6. Browns guard Teven Jenkins, who was a stand-up guy and fan favorite through four frustrating seasons with the Bears, returns to Soldier Field on Sunday — likely as a starting right guard with Wyatt Teller (calf) injured. 

Jenkins often played at a Pro Bowl level with the Bears, but from the time he opened training camp with a back injury as a rookie in 2021 and spent the first 11 games on injured reserve after having surgery, he could not stay healthy. He played on offense in 44 of 68 games and left with an injury in 12 of his 38 starts.

Jenkins signed with the Browns in the offseason, but has been played mostly on special teams until starting for Teller in a 31-29 loss to the Titans on Sunday. 

7. Raiders coach Pete Carroll raised some eyebrows when he had Daniel Carlson kick a 46-yard field goal on the final play with the Raiders trailing 24-14 with five seconds to play. It was not entirely meaningless — by losing only 24-17, the Raiders covered the 8 1/2-point spread. Pete Carroll … Vegas …. hmmm … 

That’s only the sixth time since 1978 that a game ended on a field goal attempt with a team trailing by more than a touchdown, according to research via sports-reference.com. But the last two times now, it has affected the point-spread. In 2023, the Rams’ Sean McVay had Brett Maher kick a 38-yard field goal on the final play in a 30-23 loss to the favored 49ers — with the final kick covering the 7 1/2-point spread for Rams backers. 

8. Quick Hits: The Bears’ 315 total yards (and 247 second-half yards) were the most against the Packers at Lambeau Field this season. … Caleb Williams is no longer on a pace to break the Bears’ single-season record for passing yards (Erik Kramer’s 3,838 in 1995) after throwing for 186 against the Packers. He’s on a pace for 3,803 yards. … The Bears have been called for four penalties in each of their last two games after averaging 9.5 penalties in their first 11 games. … Right tackle Darnell Wright, who looked like he had shaken the penalty bug with five consecutive games without a penalty in Weeks 4-10, has four in his last five games (not including a technical illegal formation call against the Vikings) — with a holding call in each of the last three. ... Jordan Love's 45-yard touchdown pass to Bo Melton with 38 seconds left in the first half was the longest touchdown play allowed by the Bears' defense in the final minute of a half since Cardinals running back Emari Demercardo scored on the 53-yard "Hail Emari" with four seconds left in the first half in 2024. ... A year after the Commanders' Hail Mary touchdown started the Bears' 10-game losing streak, the Commanders have lost eight straight games since Jayden Daniels' unforced fumble against the Bears in Week 6.

9. Josh McCown Ex-Bear of the Week: Lions defensive end Al-Quadin Muhammad had three sacks in a 44-20 victory over the Cowboys. Muhammad leads the Lions with nine sacks. Aidan Hutchinson has eight. 

Fun Fact: Since the Bears cut Muhammad after the 2022 season, Muhammad has more sacks in three games against the Bears (three) than he had in 16 games for the Bears (one). 

10. Bear-ometer — 12-5: vs. Browns (W); vs. Packers (W); at 49ers (L); vs. Lions (W).

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