Detroit Lions star Amon-La St. Brown and the rest of his teammates will enter the 2025 season without two of the coordinators who helped them become a league powerhouse.
Ben Johnson becomes the new head coach of the NFC North rival Chicago Bears, while Aaron Glenn becomes the New York Jets, the team that drafted him in 1994. Head coach of the Jets.
St. Brown is closer to Johnson, an innovative play-caller who helped orchestrate a Lions offense that leads the NFL in points per game in 2024.
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Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson before the game against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field. (Daniel Bartell/Imagn Images)
When Johnson discussed Johnson's departure from the Bears with brother Equine Moss on his "St. Brown Podcast," St. Brown said he spoke with his former coordinator after he signed a deal to head to the Windy City.
The message is very clear.
"I told him, I said, 'Ben, twice a year, we're going to fuck you,'" St. Brown told his brother, laughing.
Super Bowl champion says Lions losing Ben Johnson to rival Bears was a huge 'body blow'
Johnson had a similar reaction to his former students, though.
"I'm going to fuck you," St. Brown recalled Johnson responding.
The relationship is clearly one of mutual respect, with competitive banter ensues.
"Well, we'll see," St. Brown shot back at Johnson. "I told him I knew all the plays he liked to play. I knew all his tendencies, and we just chatted back and forth."
As entertaining as those jabs are, St. Brown and Johnson will have to put aside their friendship twice a year as long as Johnson is the Bears' head coach.
November 17, 2024 Detroit Lions wide receiver Ammon-Ra St. Brown scores a touchdown in the first half against the Jacksonville Jaguars (Jorge Lemus/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
With the division championship game taking place this weekend to determine who goes to the Super Bowl, the Lions are expected to return to the form they were in in January 2024, when they suffered a crushing second-half loss to the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game.
However, the Lions were eliminated in the divisional round with a 45-31 loss to the Washington Commanders at Ford Field, and Johnson left for Chicago a few days later.
Amon-La St. Brown and Ben Johnson have begun their new rivalry. (imagine)
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Johnson has Caleb Williams, the Bears' 2024 No. 1 overall pick, who can mold alongside strong offensive weapons like DJ Moore and Keenan Allen. St. Brown has expressed respect for Williams in the past, especially given their ties to USC, but the Lions defeated the Bears twice this season.
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