Ben Johnson might not have taken off his shirt, but the Chicago Bears head coach delivered his fiercest postgame speech yet following the team’s comeback victory over the Green Bay Packers in Saturday’s wild-card game.
Johnson opened his postgame speech to the team by yelling, “F— the Packers.”
“F— them! F—ing hate those guys,” Johnson said in his nearly five-minute-long postgame speech.
In one of the most dramatic games of the NFL’s longest-running rivalry, the Bears overcame a 21-3 halftime deficit to win 31-27. Chicago became just the fourth team in league history to overcome a 15-point deficit in the fourth quarter and win.
Nearly as dramatic was the postgame reaction. Before his fiery speech, Johnson had a quick handshake with Packers head coach Matt LaFleur when the game ended. It appeared LaFleur quickly told Johnson, “Good job,” before the Bears’ coach quickly moved away.
Johnson later explained to reporters that his team felt slighted by the Packers.
“There was probably a little bit more noise coming out of their building up north to start the week, which we heard loud and clear, players and coaches alike. So this one meant something to us,” Johnson said at the podium postgame.
Johnson didn’t identify the coments that irked the Bears. However, Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley told reporters on Wednesday that “I will see you guys next week,” implying Green Bay would win and move on to the divisional round. Packers wide receiver Christian Watson and cornerback Keisean Nixon had also said in the lead-up to the game that they wanted to take on the Bears in the playoffs.
Johnson and LaFleur also had an unusual back-and-forth last offseason. When Johnson was hired as head coach of the Bears last January, the former Detroit Lions offensive coordinator said that he had “tremendous” respect for their NFC North rivals, but he “kind of enjoyed beating Matt LaFleur twice a year.”
LaFleur was caught off guard by that comment.
“There is no history at all,” FOX Sports NFL insider Jay Glazer said of the relationship between Johnson and LaFleur on “FOX NFL Sunday” in December. “In fact, when I called Matt LaFleur, I told him, ‘I didn’t know you guys were tight.’ He goes, ‘We’re not! I don’t know, I’m shocked over this.'”
Johnson handed out a few game balls during his speech, including one to quarterback Caleb Williams, who threw for 361 yards and two touchdowns in the win. At the end of the speech, Williams gave Johnson a game ball as well.
“Look at this guy right here,” Williams said, pointing to Johnson. “Everything he’s done for us as a coach, everything the other coaches have done for us, and it started with them bringing in everybody in. For me, personally, he’s been — don’t get emotional — he’s been monumental in my life so far. So, to his first playoff win as a Chicago Bears head coach!”
Johnson closed out his speech with his usual “Good, better, best” mantra, but he had a message for his players before that.
“I’m so f—ing proud of you guys,” Johnson said. “To do what you just did, I said at halftime, this is one you’ll never forget. This is one you’ll never forget.”
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