Ben Johnson wins Assistant Coach of the Year; Detroit Lions face 'transition' with new OC-kid

Former Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson won NFL Assistant Coach of the Year at the NFL Honors show Thursday.

Johnson, who left the Lions last month to become head coach of the Chicago Bears, received 29 of a possible 50 first-place votes and finished with 364 points, well ahead of Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores (143 points).

Former Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn, who left to become head coach of the New York Jets, finished with 110 points, followed by Philadelphia Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio (109) and Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady (73).

Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson watches a play against Tennessee Titans during the second half at Ford Field in Detroit on Sunday, Oct. 27, 2024.

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The Lions led the NFL in scoring offense at 33.2 points per game this season and tied for the best record in the NFL at 15-2. They won the NFC North for the second straight season and had a first-round bye in the playoffs, but lost their postseason opener to the Washington Commanders in the divisional round.

Johnson originally joined the Lions as an offensive quality control coach in 2019 and stayed on Dan Campbell’s initial Lions staff in 2021 as tight ends coach.

Campbell promoted Johnson to passing game coordinator midway through the 2021 season, when he stripped Anthony Lynn of play-calling duties, and the Lions had the highest-scoring offense in the NFL the past three seasons.

NFL Network analyst Kurt Warner said the Lions will face “a transition” on offense in 2025 without Johnson calling plays.

“I think Ben was great,” NFL Network analyst Kurt Warner told the Free Press on the red carpet before Thursday’s awards show. “I think he did a lot of great things. I think he built an offense that was about confidence for his guys, trusting in his guys and there’s something to be said for that when you’re running trick plays and you’re giving your offensive tackle a chance to throw. Like the belief that it puts in your guys, and so that’s a hard thing. That’s a hard thing to build for an offensive coordinator to trust himself and trust his guys in those situations,

“So what Ben built there I think was special and it’s going to be a transition, but they’ve got a lot of great players.’

Dave Birkett is the author of the book, “Detroit Lions: An Illustrated Timeline.”

Tin Tinh Thanh

Ben Johnson wins Assistant Coach of the Year; Detroit Lions face ‘transition’ with new OC-kid

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