There's one Bears problem Ben Johnson won't be able to fix

They say you don't get a second chance to make a first impression. Even if you could, the Chicago Bears haven't put their best foot forward in either of the first two games of the Ben Johnson era, as they blew a double-digit fourth-quarter lead in their Monday Night Football home opener against the Minnesota Vikings, then got detonated by the Detroit Lions in what seemed less like just another game on the schedule and more like a Taylor Swift smash hit in which she blasts one of her exes. Alexa, play "All Too Well (Dan Campbell's Version)."

No team in the NFL has been as disappointing as the Bears. They're off to an 0-2 start in the division, while the one team they haven't faced, the Green Bay Packers, looks to be a Super Bowl contender after trading for Micah Parsons and dominating their first two games.

Bears fans are already used to the familiar cycle of getting excited in the offseason and let down once the real games are played, and it sure looks like it's happening again. It's not like general manager Ryan Poles didn't try to fix what went wrong last year, though. He vastly improved an offensive line that was one of the worst in the league (though penalties have been a persistent problem through two games), and by hiring Johnson, he ensured that for the first time in Bears history, they were able to sign the most sought-after name on the coaching carousel.

Early critics of the Bears have been quick to jump on Caleb Williams, but I'm here to tell you that Caleb is not the problem. He missed some big throws in that Week 1 loss, but already he's showing clear signs of development from last year, and his talent is still plenty evident. It's not Caleb's fault that the Bears are 0-2 — it's the defense.

That much should have been obvious after the Lions scored at will in a 52-21 rout on Sunday, but still there were people bashing Caleb. Honestly, I thought he looked really good. He made some big-time throws, and when the offense stalled, it was rarely his fault, as the Bears couldn't seem to stop committing penalties, and D'Andre Swift left a bunch of big runs on the table. Even Josh Allen isn't gong to convert 3rd-and-32.

In its current state, the Bears might have the worst defense in the NFL

The Bears' defensive problems are two-fold. First, even at full strength, this unit projected to be, at best, middle of the pack in the league. Even that may have been optimistic, if we're being honest. What has dropped the D from being mediocre to the bottom of the league (no team has allowed close to as many points as Chicago through two games) is that the best three players haven't been able to stay on the field.

Shutdown corner Jaylon Johnson missed most of training camp with a groin strain, and after sitting out Week 1, he injured it again in the second quarter against the Lions. It hasn't been confirmed yet, but the fear is that he's going to miss the rest of the season. The secondary was already under fire without do-everything nickelback Kyler Gordon, who has yet to play due to a hamstring injury. His return has been characterized as week-to-week.

Middle linebacker TJ Edwards has also been dealing with a hamstring injury. He missed Week 1 then aggravated it in the second half in Detroit, and he's now expected to miss multiple weeks. This leaves Tremaine Edmunds as the only linebacker on the roster with any experience.

The defense held up through three quarters against the Vikings before imploding, but that looks now to be more a function of JJ McCarthy being not yet ready for primetime and less like anything special the Bears managed to do. The fact that McCarthy won NFC Offensive Player of the Week for what amounted to one quarter of work against the Bears looks even worse after he struggled mightily against the Falcons at home last week.

That was just the beginning of what could become an ignominious streak. Jared Goff also won NFC Offensive Player of the Week for his work against the Bears, as he threw for 334 yards and five touchdowns. With the high-powered Cowboys coming to town this week, Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb may already be clearing room in their trophy cases.

Defensive coordinator Dennis Allen has been dealt a lousy hand, but he's going to need to scheme up some magic if the Bears want to get some wins. The pass rush has been nonexistent, the run defense got gashed last week, and if you're wondering what that sound was, it was Dick Butkus rolling over in his grave after reading this tweet from linebacker heaven.

What hope do the Bears have right now?

First and foremost, the Bears need Edwards and Gordon to get healthy. A miracle cure for Johnson would help, too. Tyrique Stevenson came into this season needing to prove that he could be counted on, and unsurprisingly, he's been completely overmatched after his battlefield promotion to the No. 1 corner role.

Dennis Allen needs to find a way to get to the quarterback. Montez Sweat doesn't have a sack yet, and free agent signee Dayo Odeyingbo isn't lighting the world on fire, either. Allen has rarely blitzed, probably due to the fear that his depleted secondary can't hold up in coverage. He's right, but if he's worried about giving up big plays, the Bears have been doing that just fine without sending extra guys. Allen may as well run a high-risk system in the hope of forcing some turnovers instead of giving up a score every time while playing conservatively.

Bears fans are right to be angry over Poles using exponentially more resources on the offense than the defense this offseason. The team's most recent draft is already aging like milk, because not only have Colston Loveland, Luther Burden III and Ozzy Trapilo contributed little to nothing so far, they were all selected over defensive players who could have made more of an immediate impact. Poles couldn't have foreseen the immediate effect injuries would have, but this D was never going to be very good even at full health.

The only way the Bears are going to win some games is to hope that Ben Johnson and Caleb Williams can outscore everyone. It's going to take 30 points minimum to beat most teams with the way this defense is looking, and although Caleb is making strides, that's a big ask so early in this partnership. Johnson may well turn out to be a great head coach, but with his defense, Bears fans are going to need to be patient.