When Ben Johnson departed the Detroit Lions for the Chicago Bears, he left with a good relationship with his former boss, Lions head coach Dan Campbell.
With Johnson serving as the Bears head coach, he remains in an NFC North division where he has strong familiarity with the opposing teams, which brings some intensity to the Bears-Lions rivalry.
Back at the NFL Scouting Combine, Campbell talked about his former assistant coach staying in the division, with their friendship remaining and the rivalry growing. Campbell has built a reputation as one of the most successful, respected, and intense coaches in the NFL, and he didn’t hold back when discussing the focus of their future matchups.
The love is not lost between Campbell and Johnson, but as Detroit has won the NFC North title the last two seasons, the plan remains the same.
“We line up and we play to win no matter who’s over there,” Campbell said. “He’s still my friend and I love him dearly, but we’re going to have to play him twice a year.”
There is definitely more juice to the Bears-Lions rivalry moving forward, especially as Johnson looks to best his former teacher as the head coach in Chicago.
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