Ben Johnson: Bears still hungry for more after four-game win streak

Ariana Pensy · Correspondent · 2 hours ago

CHICAGO - The Chicago Bears have four wins so far this season and will be looking to get their fifth against the Baltimore Ravens on Sun, Oct. 26 (Noon / CBS).

Despite Chicago’s success so far this year, head coach Ben Johnson said the team is still hungry to win more, especially since they have not yet played up to their potential.

“They’re hungry. The wins help in terms of wanting a little bit more because they haven’t been pretty wins yet and I think when we really start to turn the corner here and when we know that we’re on the right track, some of these wins, that feeling in the locker room’s like, ‘Well, shoot. It doesn’t necessarily feel like a win because we didn’t play as well as we’re capable of,’” Johnson said. “Right now, we’re really excited because that feeling of winning is so important for us that it makes us want to come back for more. But, there’s going to be a point where it’s going to be like, ‘Okay, well, we got to play even better than (what) we’ve been doing’ and I think they’re starting to understand that. The standard continues to rise. The expectation level continues to rise and I think good things are coming.”

Chicago’s dominant defense has been key to its four-game winning streak. They have 15 turnovers during this stretch and held the New Orleans Saints to just 44 rushing yards last week.

All-Pro safety Kevin Byard is one player who has played a critical role in this dominance, as he currently leads the NFL in interceptions with four and may be on his way to one of the best years of his career despite being 32 years old.

“Normally, you think those guys, they start to lose a step at some point, but that has not been the case,” Johnson said. “He’s a guy that, over the course of his career, has played at a really high level and I think with the experience that he has, your awareness level goes up and the game slows down and so, he’s able to understand route concepts. He knows when to break, where to break and he’s doing a great job catching the ball when it comes his way as well. So, he’s capitalizing on those opportunities also. So, I think he just continues to get better the more reps he gets too.”

Something has just been different with the Bears since Johnson took over as the head coach. There is a different feeling in the locker room. They are committed to Johnson’s vision and to his postgame celebration with his “Good, Better, Best” chant.

Johnson explained that this stems from his childhood and high school days and therefore has a lot of meaning to him.

“That actually goes back to high school for me and it’s something that we were a darn good high school team and probably about 25 or 30 years there. It wasn’t whether we were going to the playoffs. It was how far are we going to make it in the playoffs and just a fond memory of mine growing up postgame in that locker room,” Johnson said. “Shoot, even before I was wearing that uniform because my dad was (an) assistant coach on that team before he got into high school administration. So, I remember being in that locker room and that was just the rallying cry at that time and I think there’s something to be said when a group of men, they’re all believing the same thing. They’re saying the same thing. Its’s one heartbeat, one voice and I think our guys have enjoyed it.”