Ben Johnson loses 1st game with
Chicago as Bears blow fourth-quarter lead against Vikings
[September 09, 2025]
By JAY COHEN
CHICAGO (AP) — The opening drive was a great start for Ben Johnson.
The finish was more of the same for the Chicago Bears.
With Johnson making his debut as Chicago’s head coach, the Bears
blew an 11-point lead in the fourth quarter of an ugly 27-24 loss to
the Minnesota Vikings on Monday night. Johnson's team was flagged 12
times for 127 yards — including four false start penalties — and his
offense was shut down for much of the second half.
“We said going into Week 1 that the team that would make the least
number of mistakes would win the game, and unfortunately, we were on
the wrong side of that,” Johnson said. “We made too many there late
in the game, myself included. There were a number of things that I
could have done better.”
Caleb Williams connected on his first 10 passes for Chicago — and
then went 11 for 25 the rest of the way. He finished with 210 yards
passing and a team-high 58 yards rushing, but the offense wasted a
couple of opportunities to put the game away.
There were some scattered boos from what was left of the Soldier
Field crowd of 58,742 when it was over — a familiar scene after
Chicago dropped its last five home games on its way to a 5-12 record
last season.
“I think we came out with great energy,” safety Kevin Byard said. “I
think we made a lot of great plays, but at the end of the day we
didn’t finish. We didn’t make the plays when we needed to make
them.”
The 39-year-old Johnson was hired by Chicago in January after
spending three seasons as the offensive coordinator for the Detroit
Lions.
With Johnson calling the plays, the Bears marched right down the
field on their first possession. Williams scrambled for 9 yards to
give the team its first touchdown on its opening drive since Week 17
of 2023 season.
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Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson speaks during a news conference
following an NFL football game against the Minnesota Vikings Monday,
Sept. 8, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
“I think there was a lot of good there,” Williams
said of working with Johnson. “Our communication, I think he was
getting the plays in fast. ... I think it's a growing process. It's
going to keep growing from here. This is the start, but definitely
not the end.”
Leading 7-3, Chicago drove to the Minnesota 24 on its first drive of
the second quarter. Johnson opted to go for it on fourth-and-3, and
Williams threw incomplete while trying to find DJ Moore.
The Bears carried a 17-6 lead into the fourth after Nahshon Wright
returned an interception 74 yards for a touchdown. But J.J. McCarthy
directed the Vikings to 169 yards and three TDs in the final period.
“Statistically, I really think the defense did a really good job up
until the very end,” Johnson said. “You know that fourth quarter,
things got away from us a little bit, but up until then they kept us
in that ballgame. Offense was stalling out.”
The Bears had two chances to add to their 17-6 lead in the third and
came up empty each time. Right tackle Darnell Wright was called for
holding and Williams was flagged for intentional grounding on a
promising drive that ended when Cairo Santos missed a 50-yard field
goal on the first play of the fourth.
“When you look down at the stat sheet and you see 12 penalties,
that's got to get cleaned up in a hurry,” Johnson said. “And yet
we've been saying that all training camp as well. So we'll find a
way to get that done.”
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