While the mainstream media has chosen to focus on the narrative that Jayden Daniels defeated the Detroit Lions in their backyard, Bomani Jones represents the minority shedding light on how the Lions dug their own grave. On the latest episode of The Right Time, the veteran journalist delivered a scathing criticism of the Lions’ think tank, particularly OC Ben Johnson, for some of the gadget plays they called during the Divisional Round loss to the Commanders.
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Jones began his tirade against the Lions’ OC by urging all interested NFL teams not to hire Johnson as their head coach. For the podcast host, the game against the Commanders was a tactical disaster by Ben. And, the play that infuriated Bomani the most was Johnson’s decision to entrust passing duties to WR Jameson Williams of all people. It was part of an unorthodox trick play.
Granted, Jared Goff was having a torrid day on the field, but Bomani couldn’t believe that Ben decided to improvise with Jamo getting the snap. It was asking way too much of the wide receiver, who hasn’t impressed anyone, including Bomani, with his antics. As expected, the play backfired when Williams threw a backfoot pass to the Commanders’ defense, missing his actual target, Jahmyr Gibbs.
Bomani asserted on his show that Williams has the worst decision-making skills in the entire league, so for the veteran journalist, it was foolish of Johnson to trust the wrong man for the job, especially with the season on the line.
“Do not hire that man to be your head coach. I see that going as a disaster… You call a pass, but it’s not for your QB to throw the pass. It’s for your receiver to throw the pass, not just any receiver, the receiver that has shown us time and time again that in a league with George Pickens, it is he who has the worst judgment in the NFL… You entrusted a receiver with your season on the line. What kinda Big Brain Bullsh*t was that?”
Bomani has a message for the Chicago Bears:
“Do NOT Hire Ben Johnson to be your coach.” pic.twitter.com/zoh3g8kd3w
— The Right Time with Bomani Jones (@righttimebomani) January 20, 2025
Truth be told, Bomani Jones’ criticisms are very over the top. Had the Jameson Williams gamble worked, all of us, including him, would have been raving about the genius of Ben Johnson. But it just wasn’t the Lions’ day.
In theory, one can understand why Ben did what he did. The Commanders seemed to have all the answers to the Lions’ plays, and with the clock ticking away, the OC had to do something out of the box. He went for it and failed. As simple as that.
A better way to assess Ben’s capabilities would be to look at his overall performance throughout the season — which has undoubtedly been stellar. Citing a single play’s sample size to comment on Ben’s coaching abilities is lazy work.
