After leading Chicago to a stunning playoff turnaround, Ben Johnson faces steep odds and a depleted secondary as he battles elite competition for the NFL’s top coaching honor.
Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson came in fourth for AP Coach of the Year last season.
He took a Bears team that had won five games the year before and turned them into a playoff team that reached the Divisional Round.
Still, that apparently wasn't good enough to win the award. The winner last year was New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel. Vrabel had a similar experience with the Patriots as Johnson did with the Bears.
The Patriots went 4-13 in 2024, and then Vrabel took them to the Super Bowl.
Ahead of the 2026 season, the odds are starting to be released for the honor. Where does Johnson come in?
He is currently tied with Kellen Moore for the third-best odds +1200 on DraftKings Sportsbook. The head coaches above him are Robert Saleh (+1000), Jesse Minter (+1000) and John Harbaugh (+600).
Johnson and Moore are the only head coaches in the top five who are entering their second year with their respective franchises.
Saleh is entering his first season as the HC of the Tennessee Titans after last year's stint as the San Francisco 49ers' defensive coordinator. Minter left the staff of Jim Harbaugh at the Los Angeles Chargers for his first head coaching gig with the Baltimore Ravens.
John Harbaugh was fired by the Ravens and is preparing for his first season as the head coach of the New York Giants.
The road is already looking like it's going to be tougher for Johnson in year two. The Bears are going to be without safety Coby Bryant for 4-6 months with a knee injury that he sustained at training camp practice.
It was initially thought the injury wasn't as severe after ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that he would only be out 8-10 weeks. That wasn't the case, and now the Bears are going to be without one of their starters for most of the season.
Nickel corner Kyler Gordon also has not come off the PUP list. He only played in three games last season due to hamstring and groin injuries.
The defense was a struggle last year, especially with all the injuries in the secondary. The Bears' pass defense allowed the 11th-most yards per game (239.2) in 2025. Gordon and Jaylon Johnson were both out for most of the year with injuries.
Now, Bryant is going to be out for a significant amount of time, and Gordon hasn't participated in a training camp practice yet.
The Bears lost safety Kevin Byard to free agency, who accounted for seven interceptions. Bryant was supposed to be the replacement for Byard.
Chicago may not be able to mask its defensive inefficiencies with turnover production again this year. If Johnson is able to overcome this again, he may earn himself the AP Coach of the Year award.
