Detroit Lions star Amon-Ra St. Brown and the rest of his teammates will be heading into the 2025 season without two coordinators who helped turn them into a league powerhouse.
Ben Johnson is the new head coach of the NFC North rival Chicago Bears, while Aaron Glenn became head coach of the team that drafted him in 1994, the New York Jets.
St. Brown was closer to Johnson, the innovative play-caller who helped scheme a Lions offense that led the NFL in points per game in 2024.
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Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson before a game against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field. (Daniel Bartel/Imagn Images)
When talking about Johnson’s departure for the Bears on his “St. Brown Podcast” with older brother Equanimeous, St. Brown said he spoke with his former coordinator after he signed his deal to head to the Windy City.
And the message was pretty clear.
“I told him, I said, ‘Two times a year, Ben, we’re going to f— you up,’” St. Brown told his brother while laughing.
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Johnson, though, had a similar response for his former pupil.
“I’m going to f— you up,” St. Brown recalls Johnson replying.
The relationship is clearly one of mutual respect, and competitive banter is something that usually follows there.
“OK, we’ll see,” St. Brown fired back at Johnson. “I told him I know all the plays he likes to run. I know all his tendencies, and we were going back and forth messing around.”
Though the jabs were playful, St. Brown and Johnson will have to turn their friendship to the side twice a year as long as Johnson is the head coach of the Bears.
Detroit Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown runs for a touchdown during the first half against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Detroit Nov. 17, 2024 (Jorge Lemus/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
With the conference championship games being played this weekend to determine who plays in the Super Bowl, the Lions were expected to be back where they were in January 2024, when they had a second-half collapse against the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC title game.
However, the Lions were eliminated in a 45-31 loss at Ford Field to the Washington Commanders in the divisional round, and Johnson was heading to Chicago days later.
Amon-Ra St. Brown and Ben Johnson are already kicking off their new rivalry. (Imagn)
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Johnson has the Bears’ 2024 No. 1 overall pick, Caleb Williams, to mold alongside some solid offensive weapons like D.J. Moore and Keenan Allen. St. Brown has also shown respect to Williams in the past, especially given their USC connection, but the Lions took down the Bears twice this season.
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