Magic Johnson was not happy about the Washington Commanders’ loss to the Chicago Bears. What did he say?

There is no way to sugarcoat the manner in which the Commanders slumped to a disastrous loss against arguably the NFL’s worst team in recent years. Understandably, for a former professional athlete such as the Lakers legend, who is now a limited owner of the franchise, it was simply too much to take.

Magic Johnson is not happy with the Washington Commanders

Let’s set the stage for you. Ahead of Thursday night’s game between the Chicago Bears and the Washington Commanders, the Bears had lost 14 straight games going back to last season i.e. the longest active streak in the NFL and in the team’s history. That’s to say that the Commanders and their fans would have come into the contest expecting a win. Not only were they denied what they imagined they would get, but they were actually taken apart by the Bears piece by piece. By halftime the 0-4 Bears were leading 27-3 and by the end of it all they had recorded their first win of the season courtesy of a 40-20 mauling of the Commanders.

With regards to the how and why, special mention should be made of Bears wide receiver DJ Moore, who didn’t put a foot wrong on the night as he posted 230 receiving yards to go with three touchdowns both of which were career-highs, making him the first Chicago player with 200 or more receiving yards and three or more touchdowns in a game since Harlon Hill did the same way back in 1954. The point is, it was not a good night for the Commanders who have now conceded 30 or more points in each of their last four games. As you can imagine, it wasn’t long before the critique started to come in and one of the people to give it was actually Commanders limited owner and NBA Hall of Famer, Magic Johnson.

“Tonight the Commanders played with no intensity or fire,” the Basketball Hall of Famer and Commanders limited owner tweeted postgame. “We didn’t compete in the first half and got down 27-3 heading into halftime. It was too big of a hole to climb out of and that is why we ended up losing 40-20.”

Is Magic Johnson stating the obvious?

To be fair, it depends on how you want to look at it. On one side, the Commanders lost to a team that hasn’t won since Week 9 of last season i.e., they were poor. On the other, the Bears didn’t just play well enough to deserve their win, they got creative as well. Take, for example, the moment when running back Khalil Herbert took a shotgun handoff up the middle for 16 yards on third-and-seven just before halftime. That’s not the kind of play you associate with a team on a 14-game skid.

At any rate, Johnson isn’t speaking as a fan, but rather as a member of the establishment having recently been part of the ownership group that finalized the purchase of the Commanders from former owner Daniel Snyder. In that sense, one could argue it’s his right to make his feelings known now that he literally has a vested interest in the team, however, since he now has a vested interest in the team, wouldn’t it be better to build up as opposed to tearing down? Then, there is also the fact that Johnson, though a sporting legend, is not famous for football but rather basketball which to be clear does not devalue his opinion, however, it can’t be ignored.

To be honest the Commanders were terrible

While we can discuss the nuances in play and of course Johnson’s take on the team, the reality is when the final whistle blew on Thursday night, the Bears had outrun the Commanders by 149 yards - 178 to 29 - and Washington’s quarterback Sam Howell was the team’s leading rusher with 19 yards on four carries. Yes, it was that bad. If you want specifics, Pro Football Focus explained that from the second quarter to the game’s end, the Commanders dropped back to pass without a design run on 55 occasions. That was the most by any team since 2006. Whether Johnson was too harsh or not harsh enough, it’s clear that something has got to change in Washington.