Ben Johnson Takes Dig at Packers in 1st Bears Press Conference

The Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears possess the oldest rivalry in NFL history. Yet, over the past decade it hasn't felt like much of one with the Packers winning all but three times.

That said, Green Bay did lose to Chicago in Week 18, potentially signaling an unwanted change in the rivalry from the Packers' side. Moreover, the Bears have hired the clear top head coaching candidate of the offseason in Ben Johnson. Green Bay has rarely had to worry about being outcoached when facing the Bears, but against Johnson, the scales may be more even.

During his introductory press conference on Wednesday, Johnson made a bold claim about why he wanted to stay in the NFC North. Johnson told reporters, "To be quite frank with you, I kind of enjoyed beating Matt LaFleur twice a year," according to Chris Emma of 670 the score.

Packers News: Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson says he enjoys beating Matt LaFleur

Since Johnson took over as the Detroit Lions offensive coordinator in 2022, the Packers are 1-5 against the Lions. In those six meetings, Green Bay has allowed Johnson's offense to score a combined 186 points. While that's certainly concerning, Johnson is no longer in Detroit with one of the highest-powered offenses in the league.

Instead, he is now coaching a Bears team that has talent at the skill positions, but a terrible offensive line. Although the O-line will likely get rebuilt, it won't be the same he had in Detroit, which could make running his offense difficult.

Furthermore, Johnson has never dealt with the pressure of beating the Packers from Bears fans and the organization. As a result, his words may come back to bite him when these teams meet twice next season.

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