Bear Digest

Why Jaylon Johnson Could Be Tested Sunday Like During Bears Camp

Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson considers himself a dominant DB but the Tennessee Titans can bring three veteran standout receivers to bear against Chicago's secondary.

Gene Chamberlain

A new father, Jaylon Johnson this week is certain to be tested against the Titans' newly assembled, veteran receiver corps.
A new father, Jaylon Johnson this week is certain to be tested against the Titans' newly assembled, veteran receiver corps. / Photo Chicago Bears Video
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Considering additions to the Tennessee Titans receiver corps, Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson on Sunday might actually get the challenge he rarely had last year after establishing his abilities.

Johnson, graded the NFL's top cornerback last year by Pro Football Focus, last year was targeted only 58 times as quarterbacks chose instead to pick on cornerback Tyrique Stevenson. Johnson faced 78 and 72 targets in his first two NFL seasons.

"I think for me, my mentality regardless if I get targets or not, is complete dominance," Johnson said.  "And I don't need to have a ball thrown at a receiver to know he was never open.

"If I don't get the ball throw my way, if I do, my mentality is if they do throw it's a wasted rep for them. So, I mean, for me, I expect to win every rep, every one-on-one, every chance I get. I don't expect to lose. I don't think I’m losing. Every snap, I'm going into it thinking the ball's coming."

The reason it could come his way more Sunday at Soldier Field is the Titans have enough receivers they could attack through the air all through the secondary. At least they could if DeAndre Hopkins is healthy.

The veteran acquisition, who had a 1,000-yard season at age 31 for Arizona last year, has nursed a knee injury since July and the Titans are hopeful he'll play. It's uncertain at this point. However, they do also have Calvin Ridley after a 1,000-yard receiving season for Jacksonville and Tyler Boyd, who had 50 receptions or more in seven of his eight seasons with the Bengals.

Obviously they've loaded up veteran receivers for second-year QB Will Levis to target but the Bears have seen Johnson handle standout veteran receivers DJ Moore and Keenan Allen and first-round pick Rome Odunze throughout training camp.

"Especially this year it was hard to catch against him," Bears receiver DJ Moore said. "I don't know what it was. He's living right. I know him and Keenan had that back and forth, but he was out there like a lockdown corner. It didn't matter who or what play it was, he was out there competing.

"He's got something to prove this year. I think he just wants to go out there and prove that he can be a top DB, a top corner out there. That's what he's proving."

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Johnson's give-and-take with Allen was featured on HBO's Hard Knocks. Allen claimed he hadn't caught a pass on Johnson all camp. After saying this, and following a false rumor circulating that Allen was somehow fatter and slower, Allen went out and caught a slant pass against Johnson to start a practice for a huge gain. At least he wasn't shut out.

"He's patient, he plays his assignment well," Allen said of Johnson. "He knows routes. He squats, which means he like sits on routes, so he's always looking to make a pass breakup or something like that. He doesn't like anybody to catch the ball on him.

"He's greedy in that way, which is a good thing. So, a good competitor."

And one snubbed for the Pro Bowl and All-Pro, at least in the past. It's not just the major NFL honors he's been overlooked by, as he wasn't on the top 100 player list and was even ranked out of the top 10 cornerbacks on Madden.

"I mean, Pro Bowl, All-Pro, that's kind of a no-brainer," Allen said. "I mean, it is what it is. Year-in and year-out you get kind of the same guys. So, pnce he gets in one time it just happens like that."

A team captain now and also a new father, Johnson's perspective remains the same.

He was called off the practice field when word came his daughter was going to be born.

"Yeah, I mean, I kind of had a feeling because she was already seven centimeters dilated, not to give too much information," he said. "I already kind of knew something was going to come, so I gave them my phone. I got that call earlier than expected."

He showed up at Monday's press conference wearing a hat denoting his new father status.

 "I mean, honestly a good little break, reset," Johnson said. "I've been full go since I left for minicamp.

"I think getting a little break, getting a getaway, being able to bring my daughter into this world. Just a beautiful process, a beautiful thing to see and to witness."

Next experience for Johnson is playing for a winning team. He hasn't been on one in Chicago, yet, including his rookie year of 2020 when they went 8-8 and made the playoffs before losing the first game.

Johnson has grown tired of disappointment.

"I mean for me I'm done buying into the hype, honestly," he said. "I mean, I feel like I've said it plenty of times I've had some pretty good rosters and plenty of talented people in the locker rooms. Some times where, 'Oh yeah, this is our year. This is our year.'

"So, I mean, everything we have in his locker room sounds good. It seems good, but I've seen it, but at the end of the day, none of that matters. What matters is what we're going to do this weekend and from every Sunday or Monday, whatever game it is. That's when it matters. So I mean the preseason hype for me don't move me."

To achieve this is probably going to require a fast start this season because it gets much tougher in the season's second half. So beating the Titans and handling the Tennessee receiver corps immediately is critical.

They'll need Johnson to be ready to dominate the way he says he can.

"Yeah, winning is important," Johnson said. "So I mean our first opportunity is Week 1, so that's very much so important to get off to a fast start because that's the only opportunity we got so far.

"So I mean just for us, we start off 1-0, we have started off 0-1 before. I mean it doesn't really change things for us. I mean we want to go 1-0 each and every week and we get the first opportunity to do that."

Twitter: BearsOnSI

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.