Detroit Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown took to his platform, the St. Brown Podcast, to talk about offensive coordinator Ben Johnson’s departure for the Chicago Bears’ head coach job.

“I love Ben. One of my favorite coaches that I’ve ever had,” the Pro Bowl wide receiver said in an episode released Wednesday. “One of the hardest-working coaches that I’ve been around. Obviously I would want to have him in Detroit forever.”

There had been speculation last offseason that Johnson would leave Detroit and take an NFL head coach job, but he ultimately decided to return to the Lions in hopes of a Super Bowl.

“If he didn’t leave this year, then I feel like teams are going to say, ‘Oh, what’s wrong with him?’ ” St. Brown said. “We had the most points. We had the highest-scoring offense in the league. … I feel like this was the year for him to leave, and he took it, so I don’t blame him.”

[EXCLUSIVE: 1-on-1 interview with Ben Johnson]

Detroit had a high-flying offense under Johnson. In three seasons with him calling plays, the Lions averaged 29.0 points per game, the best in the NFL during that stretch. In 2024, the NFC North champions put up 33.2 points per game, also the league’s top mark.

The season before Johnson called plays — Jared Goff’s first in Detroit after being traded from the Los Angeles Rams — the Lions averaged just 19.1 points per game, 25th in the NFL.

“He’s obviously excited for the opportunity,” St. Brown said. “[They’ve] got our boy Caleb [Williams] over there, who’s talented. They got some good players over there … They got a pretty good team.”

Johnson helped the Lions to a winning record in three consecutive seasons, including back-to-back NFC North titles. The Bears now want those winning ways in Chicago.

Check out the entire reaction on the St. Brown Podcast.