Bears' Ben Johnson Hypes 'Match Made in Heaven' for Lions Hiring Drew Petzing as Dan Campbell's OC

Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson believes the Detroit Lions found the right man for the job when they hired Drew Petzing as their new offensive coordinator.

"I think he's going to blow those players away just from a knowledge standpoint, from a connection standpoint," Johnson told Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (via Pro Football Talk's Michael David Smith). "I fully expect that offense to be clicking at a high level next year. It wouldn't surprise me one bit, and I think there's a reason why Dan, from what I could gather, cast a wide net for the offensive coordinator job and Drew hit the right notes in terms of what he was looking for. That doesn't surprise me. I could see this being a great fit knowing Dan and knowing Drew both. I think it's probably a match made in heaven."

Johnson and Petzing crossed paths on Boston College's coaching staff together in 2010 and 2011. Petzing was a graduate assistant for those two years, while Johnson had worked his way up to become the tight ends coach in 2011.

Johnson's strong assessment might help to sell Lions fans on a hiring that wasn't exactly met with rave reviews.

In his three years as the offensive coordinator, the Arizona Cardinals never finished higher than 11th in yards or 12th in points. Before that, he was the Cleveland Browns quarterbacks coach in 2022, when the team started Deshaun Watson and Jacoby Brissett under center.

Granted, a lot of people may not have had strong opinions about Johnson being promoted to Detroit's offensive coordinator in 2022 on the back of being the tight ends coach.

Perhaps head coach Dan Campbell unearthed a diamond in the rough once again.