Jets fan calls Lions game expert for help

“Save me!! Ben Johnson.”

That was the wish of a New York Jets fan on Halloween night who begged Johnson, the Detroit Lions' offensive coordinator and play-calling expert, to move to New York in 2025.

The fan, who was at Thursday Night Football between the Jets and Houston Texans, wore a brown paper bag over his head – Detroit fans know the look – with the words “JETS ARE PLAYING ATTENTION!!” written across the top. The desperate message to Johnson was scrawled beneath the two eye cutouts.

In late January, Johnson almost became head coach of the Washington Commanders before withdrawing his name to “reap the rewards” with the Lions. They had just sorely missed their first Super Bowl appearance.

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The Lions are atop the NFC at 6-1 near halftime this season and are riding a five-game winning streak led by a dynamic offense that has scored at least 40 points in three of the last four games. Quarterback Jared Goff was named the NFC Offensive Player of the Month for October and has a historic four-game winning streak.

Johnson can't take a new job until the Lions finish their season, which might not be until Feb. 10, the day after Super Bowl 59 in New Orleans. Hey, you never know.

The Jets fired head coach Robert Saleh, a Dearborn native, three weeks ago and named defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich as interim coach. After a 21:13 comeback home win against the Texans, they are 3:6.

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Here's more background on Lions assistant Ben Johnson.

Who is Ben Johnson on the Lions?

Johnson, 38, was born in Charleston, South Carolina and attended high school in Asheville, North Carolina.

He was a backup quarterback in college at North Carolina and graduated in 2008 with a degree in mathematics and computer science.

He began his coaching career at Boston College in 2009 as a graduate assistant and moved to the NFL in 2012 with the Miami Dolphins as an offensive assistant under head coach Joe Philbin. Current Lions head coach Dan Campbell was also on the Dolphins staff, and Johnson and Campbell were together in Miami for four seasons before Campbell left for New Orleans.

Johnson worked his way up to wide receivers coach with the Dolphins in 2018 and was hired by Lions head coach Matt Patricia in 2019 as an offensive quality control coach.

Johnson was the tight ends coach in 2020-21 and remained that way when Campbell was hired as the new coach in 2021. Johnson added the passing game coordinator role during the 2021 season when Campbell took away calling plays from Anthony Lynn. Johnson helped the Lions win three of their last six games after starting the season 0-10-1.

Johnson was promoted to offensive coordinator for the 2022 season, and his playmaking ability has since helped Goff and the Lions' offense become one of the best units in the league.

Johnson was still considered a top coaching candidate after the 2022 season, but decided to return to the Lions after discussions with several teams.

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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Jets fan asks Ben Johnson of Detroit Lions for help