Ben Johnson likes to use two running backs, who will get the carries behind D’Andre Swift?
As we move forward with our training camp battles, we pivot back to the offense, and we look at the running back room. Let’s first address the rhinoscurious in the room.
I say rhino because it’s not quite an elephant, and that is if the Chicago Bears are going to add a veteran running back before the start of the regular season.
If they do, and let’s say it’s someone like Kenneth Walker, Walker and D’Andre Swift would become the duo that eats the carries, and this training camp battle won’t matter too much.
But it’s going to be the performances of Swift, Roschon Johnson, and Kyle Monangai that will decide whether the Bears make a move and add someone like Walker in August.
It’s my opinion that D’Andre Swift is a solid RB2 and that Roschon Johnson is an excellent RB3. We need to see what Monangai is before we can assess him, but I think Monangai’s ceiling is a between-the-tackles RB2, and we will see if he can reach that level.
But while Swift might be a good RB2 and Johnson a good RB3, there isn’t an RB1 on the roster, so it’ll be up to Swift, Johnson, and Monangai to prove my opinion wrong and settle the Bears’ backfield.
For the sake of this conversation, let’s assume the Bears are moving forward with this backfield. Heading into training camp, Swift will clearly be the RB1 on the team, but I don’t think it’s out of the realm of possibility that if Johnson (or possibly Monangai) really stand out in camp, they grab the RB1 duties and Swift becomes the change-of-pace RB2 on the team.
Why do I say that? History. When we look at Ben Johnson’s first year as offensive coordinator in Detroit, he inherited a roster where that same Swift was the team’s main running back. But they also had Jamal Williams, who had always been considered an RB2 or RB3. In week one, Swift had the lion’s share of the carries, but by week two, it was pretty even. By week three? Williams had 20 carries and kept the RB1 role the rest of the season.
Perhaps three years later, Swift and Ben Johnson will have a different relationship, but it did not fit too well. If it still doesn’t fit well three years later, Johnson is going to be looking for a running back to unseat Swift, but they’ll have to earn it.
I would be shocked if Monangai, a seventh-round pick, would be able to grab that type of role early in the season, but I would not be shocked if Johnson can do it.
Johnson comps similarly to what Williams did in Detroit. A guy that can run between the tackles, hit holes hard, block (we know critical for Ben’s offense), and even catch a little.
We don’t know what Monangai is going to be. In most drafts, he certainly would have been higher than a seventh-round pick, but in a loaded running back class, he was pushed down a couple of rounds. Probably could have been a 5th round pick most years, maybe even a fourth rounder in weaker classes.
In short, Monangai was a really nice value. Monangai and Roshon won’t just be battling each other to become the complementary back, but they also might push Swift for carries as well. But before one of them can do that, they need the RB2 role to shake out.
You would have to think that Johnson will have the inside track to win the job as a veteran, but if Monangai impresses, the Bears will pivot to the rookie and give him more time to develop into a key piece on this offense.
The Bears have beefed up the line in front of them and should have a far more cohesive running plan than the one they had in 2024; that alone should give a boost to both Swift and Johnson compared to who they were last year.
Swift was a guy who was frequently asked to run the ball, where he isn’t the most dangerous with it, and Johnson was reduced to a short-yardage back, which led to his abysmal yards per carry average (2.7).
Of all the battles, this is the one that may get the most column space from the Bears’ media because running back battles are juicy to talk about; the only thing juicier is a quarterback controversy.
This will be a fun one to watch from July all the way to September.