Bears wanted more accountability last season. Ben Johnson’s ready to deliver it.
Joe Thuney quickly started to realize something in the months since the Bears traded for him in March.
As the days turned into weeks, Thuney recognized Halas Hall as a special place filled with a special history and special people. It didn’t take long for Thuney to gain confidence that the Bears were on the precipice of doing something really cool and wanted to be a part of it.
He signed a two-year contract extension with the Bears on Wednesday to ensure that happens.
“Everyone seems to be really intent, intense and focused,” Thuney told reporters Wednesday. “It’s something I want to be a part of. Guys working for each other and everyone’s trying to improve bit-by-bit. It’s a process. It’s early, but I think guys like working here. It’s been great.”
That’s good for the Bears to hear given Thuney’s experiences with winning cultures. He spent the first nine years of his career with the New England Patriots and the Kansas City Chiefs and played with some of the NFL’s best coaches and quarterbacks. Thuney also won four Super Bowls along the way.
But what Thuney has noticed early on has been a culture shift at Halas Hall that many veteran players have echoed this offseason. It’s come with the arrival of new head coach Ben Johnson’s coaching staff as the Bears try to break their struggle to consistently win over the past decade.
The shift started earlier this offseason during its first two phases. Johnson and his staff clearly communicated their intentions and standards for how they want the team to run. The Bears started executing that vision during voluntary workouts and meetings.
Players appreciated the clear vision and viewed with a breath of fresh air. They know what is expected out of each of them on every play and the standard they need to reach in order to reach those intentions.
“This isn’t a program where you try to be guys’ friends and hopefully they’ll buy in,” veteran defensive tackle Grady Jarrett said. “No. You have to get with it. I’ve been around for a long time and that’s the kind of culture you have to set early because when the expectations are high, that’s what you want.”
Johnson has matched those expectations during the offseason’s third phase by setting a high intensity during practices. He’s repeated the demand for the Bears to do everything at a high level and that’s been clear in the staff’s first few practices.
That was evident in Wednesday’s organized team activities. Although the Bears were forced to practice indoors because of the rain, they practiced with high speed and intensity for much of the two-hour practice.
Linebacker Tremaine Edmunds said the players have tried to match their coaches’ intensity early on. He’s noticed players on both sides of the ball wanting to make plays at practice that mimics their coach’s style.
The offensive players wants to put up as many points as it can, mirroring Johnson’s mindset. The defense wants to create turnovers and not let the offense move the ball at all, matching defensive coordinator Dennis Allen.
“You want a coach that got energy like that, and you want a coach that cares about winning and winning in a dominant fashion,” Edmunds said of Johnson. “I definitely feel that energy from him now.”
If players don’t reach that standard, the coaches aren’t afraid to let them know it. In the few practices open to reporters this offseason, coaches have shown they’ll actively and vocally hold their players accountable. Johnson stopped a play and was vocally upset when a player wasn’t lined up in the proper spot Wednesday.
That’s been fine for the Bears. Players spent much of last year’s disastrous 5-12 season asking to be held accountable. They’re open to changing a culture that hasn’t led to many wins over the past decade.
“I think that the main thing we’re trying to get accomplished is really shifting the culture, changing the culture and not trying to do what we’ve done in the past,” safety Kevin Byard said, “and just try to look forward toward the future.”
Although the vibes at Halas Hall are good, players recognized that it’s early. The change is what they consider to be the first step of a long process toward winning.
The Bears are hoping the work they’re putting in May will pay dividends in the fall. They’re expected to play one of the league’s toughest schedules this season.
The Bears will spend the next month of OTAs and minicamp learning the new systems and building bonds with each other and the coaching staff. But they can’t help but to be excited about the change taking place in the building.
“It’s going to be good,” Edmunds said. “It’s a journey though. One day at a time.”