NFL Trade Rumors: Detroit Lions OC Ben Johnson to Interview With New England Patriots, Chicago Bears

The Detroit Lions may become victims of their own success. According to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson will interview with both the Chicago Bears and New England Patriots regarding their head coaching vacancies this week.

#Lions OC Ben Johnson will interview for the #Patriots and #Bears head coaching jobs during this week’s bye — a sign he has real interest in both jobs. @nflnetwork pic.twitter.com/tDzqcyl9rz
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) January 6, 2025

Johnson is available because the Lions earned a bye by beating the Minnesota Vikings 31-9 in the regular season finale. The Patriots fired head coach Jerod Mayo in the hours proceeding their 23-16 win over the Buffalo Bills, and interim Bears head coach Thomas Brown is not expected to be retained after leading the team to an ineffectual 1-4 record since replacing head coach Matt Nagy mid-season.

Johnson has only improved his stock since emerging as a hot head coaching prospect last year. His Lions finished the 2024 season scoring an NFL-best 33.2 points per game and excelled through the air (7.7 net yards per passing attempt, second in the league) and on the ground (4.7 rushing yards per attempt, ninth in the league). He's no one-year wonder, either: the Lions are the only team in the league to have finished in the top five for points scored in each of the past three seasons.

Johnson has a real claim to being the most effective offensive coach in the NFL, so he'd be an asset to organizations looking to build around young quarterbacks. Johnson notably turned around the career of quarterback Jared Goff after he was cast aside by the Los Angeles Rams. Goff has passed for 267.5 yards per game and 7.19 net yards per attempt over the past three seasons and amassed a 36-15 record over that span.

The Bears and Patriots both desperately need that sort of magic. Caleb Williams, the first-overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, disappointed in his rookie season, netting 4.88 yards per dropback and absorbing an NFL-high 68 sacks. Patriots rookie Drake Maye, the third-overall pick, maintained a lower profile but was arguably even worse: The Patriots finished 30th in the league in points scored with 17.0 per game, and Maye won only one game in which he played more than a half (a 19-3 win over, fittingly, the Bears).

The Bears and Patriots are both pinning their futures on their young quarterbacks. Unfortunately for them, there's only one Johnson in the league, and he should have his pick of many suitors. Whoever he deems a better prospect between Williams and Maye may ultimately decide where he ends up.