Ben Johnson Hit the Stanky Leg Again — and the Internet Can't Decide If It's Brilliant or Cringe

What happened, in one sentence

Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson did the Stanky Leg again in the visitors' locker room after Chicago beat the Atlanta Falcons 31-23 — and the clip, shared from the Bears' own account, instantly split the internet between fans who love it and fans calling it gloriously cringe.

It happened right before Johnson led his trademark "Good, Better, Best" chant. Johnson grinned, put a hand on his chest, bent one leg at the knee and shook it while a circle of players cheered him on and, by multiple accounts, called for the move.

Why is Ben Johnson's dance blowing up?

Because this is now a tradition, not a one-off. Johnson first went viral for the Stanky Leg after the Bears beat the Philadelphia Eagles 27-7 in Week 3. He later explained on ESPN 1000 that he walked into the locker room to find a boombox waiting and everyone expecting something — so he defaulted to the dance, kept it PG, and joked that "the Crip walk might come out next."

This time the context made it funnier. A week earlier Chicago had been beaten 31-7 by the Green Bay Packers, and rival fans were quick to ask where the dance was then. The contrast — silent after a blowout loss, dancing after a bounce-back win — is exactly the material social media runs on.

How did the Bears beat the Falcons 31-23?

Chicago started fast and held on late:

Final score: Bears 31, Falcons 23, in Week 6 in Atlanta.
Caleb Williams returned from injury and threw for 305 passing yards and one touchdown. Sportskeeda put his line at 30-of-36 completions.
D'Andre Swift ran for two touchdowns and Roschon Johnson added another, a four-yard score in the third quarter.
Chicago led 14-0 after the first quarter, 21-7 at halftime and 28-7 in the third, then pushed it to 31-7 on a 50-yard Cairo Santos field goal.
Atlanta rallied in the fourth — Michael Penix Jr. finished with 225 passing yards and three touchdowns — scoring 16 late points, but Chicago closed it out.
The win moved the Bears to 4-2, a week after that 31-7 loss to Green Bay.

What are fans actually saying?

The reaction is genuinely divided, and that split is driving the shares. Bears fans and the team's own history accounts are framing the dance as a ritual the players demand — a sign of a loose, confident locker room after wins. The phrase attached to it in the locker room is the same one Johnson uses for his postgame speech: "Good, Better, Best."

Rival fans were blunter. Widely shared replies collected by Sportskeeda and College Football Network included "Don't ever do that again," "He's such a weirdo," "This dude is so corny," and "That is unspeakably cringe" — alongside jokes asking what dance he did after the Packers loss. In other words, even the mockery is engagement: the clip works because a serious, play-calling head coach is willing to look silly on camera for about ten seconds.

ClutchPoints framed the other side simply: hopefully there is more dancing to come, because if Johnson is dancing again, it means Chicago won again.

Why this matters beyond a funny clip

Coaches guard their image carefully. Johnson is doing the opposite — leaning into a bit his players created for him. For a young team built around Williams, that loose culture picture matters. It also creates a weekly test fans now apply: win, and the dance returns; lose, and the silence gets memed just as hard.

What's next for the Bears?

Chicago is 4-2 and, per ClutchPoints, next faces the New England Patriots — also listed at 4-2 — a much sterner defensive test. If the Bears execute even better, as that preview put it, Williams may need to do a little more than he did in Atlanta. And if Chicago wins, every camera in the locker room will be waiting for one thing before the chant starts.

Sources

FAQ

What dance did Ben Johnson do after the Falcons game?

He did the Stanky Leg — bending one leg at the knee and shaking it — in the visitors' locker room before leading the Bears' "Good, Better, Best" chant after the 31-23 win over Atlanta.

What was the Bears vs. Falcons score and Caleb Williams' stats?

Chicago won 31-23. In his return from injury, Caleb Williams threw for 305 yards and one touchdown, while D'Andre Swift ran for two touchdowns.

When did Ben Johnson's Stanky Leg start?

It started after Chicago's 27-7 win over the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 3, when players had a boombox waiting for him in the locker room and the clip first went viral.

Why are some fans calling the dance cringe?

Rival fans mocked the celebration online, contrasting it with Chicago's quiet week after a 31-7 loss to Green Bay — while Bears fans and players treat the dance as a beloved win tradition.