Ben Johnson isn't backing down from his viral locker-room speech.
After the Bears rallied to knock off the Green Bay Packers in an NFC wild-card game Saturday, the jubilant Chicago coach gave his opinion of the team's division rival to his equally excited players.
"F--- the Packers. F--- them," Johnson said to wild cheers in the locker room after the team's largest playoff comeback in franchise history at Soldier Field.
On Monday, reporters asked Johnson about his choice of words.
"Like I said before, there's a rivalry that exists between these two teams," Johnson said. "Something I fully recognize and I'm a part of. I don't like that team. (Bears owner) George (McCaskey) and I have talked and we're on the same page."
There was clear bad blood between the teams. A celebratory Johnson offered only a very quick handshake to Packers counterpart Matt LaFleur without making much eye contact in the wild aftermath of Saturday's game.
Johnson, when hired by the Bears, said he "enjoyed beating Matt LaFleur twice a year" during his time as offensive co-ordinator of the Detroit Lions.
Packers defensive co-ordinator Jeff Hafley seemed to add fuel to the fire before the game when he told reporters in a press conference that "we are not going to be done, so I will see you guys next week."
Johnson, a first-year head coach, acknowledged there was something a bit more special about beating the Packers on Saturday.
"There was probably a little bit more noise coming out of their building up north to start the week, which we heard loud and clear, players and coaches alike," Johnson said, per ESPN. "This one meant something to us."
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