Jaylon Johnson

Jaylon Lawrence Johnson (born April 19, 1999) is an American professional football cornerback for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Utah Utes.

Early life

Johnson attended Central High School in Fresno, California. He played in the 2017 US Army All-American Bowl. He committed to the University of Utah to play college football. Johnson also played basketball in high school.

College career

As a true freshman at Utah in 2017, Johnson played in 12 games and made two starts, recording 25 tackles and one interception. He became a starter his sophomore year in 2018, starting all 14 games. He finished the season with 41 tackles, four interceptions and a touchdown. Johnson returned as a starter his junior year in 2019. Following a junior season where he had 10 pass breakups and was named to the First-team All-Pac-12 Conference, Johnson announced that he would forgo his senior season and declare for the 2020 NFL draft.

Professional career

Pre-draft

Pro Football Focus ranked Johnson fourth (24th overall) amongst all cornerbacks in the 2020 NFL Draft. ''Sports Illustrated'' ranked him the seventh best cornerback in the draft. CBS Sports ranked him as the eighth best cornerback in the draft. NFL draft analysts projected Johnson to be drafted in the second or third round.

2020

The Chicago Bears selected Johnson in the second round (50th overall) of the 2020 NFL Draft. He was the seventh cornerback drafted and was the first of two cornerbacks the Bears drafted in 2020, along with sixth round pick (163rd overall) Kindle Vildor.

On July 21, 2020, the Chicago Bears signed Johnson to a four–year, $6.46 million contract that included $3.16 million guaranteed upon signing and an initial signing bonus of $2.26 million.

Throughout training camp, Johnson competed to be the No. 2 starting cornerback against Buster Skrine, Duke Shelley, and Kindle Vildor after it became vacant following the departure of Prince Amukamara. Head coach Matt Nagy named Kyle Fuller and Johnson the starting cornerbacks to begin the season.

On September 13, 2020, Johnson started in the Chicago Bears' season-opener at the Detroit Lions and made a season-high six combined tackles (five solo) and a season-high three pass deflections during a 27–23 comeback victory. In Week 10, he collected a season-high tying five solo tackles during a 13–19 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. On December 13, 2020, Johnson made three solo tackles before exiting in the third quarter due to an injury as the Bears defeated the Houston Texans 36–7. He injured his shoulder and was subsequently sidelined for the final three games (Weeks 15–17) of the season. He finished his rookie season in 2020 with a total of 44 combined tackles (34 solo) and 15 passes defended in 13 games and 13 starts.

2021 season

On January 22, 2021, the Chicago Bears promoted Sean Desai from safeties coach to defensive coordinator after the retirement of Chuck Pagano. Johnson became the Bears' No. 1 cornerback after Kyle Fuller was released. Head coach Matt Nagy paired Johnson with Kindle Vildor as the starting cornerback duo to kickoff the season.

On September 19, 2021, Johnson made two combined tackles, a career-high four pass deflections, and made his first career interception on a pass thrown by Joe Burrow to wide receiver Tee Higgins during a 20-17 victory against the Cincinnati Bengals. Through the first two weeks of the season, on all passes to players he was covering, Johnson only allowed one reception, while knocking down three attempts and intercepting a pass. This earned him the highest-rated pass coverage grade (an advanced stat that measures the ability to cover receivers) in the league through that point. On November 25, 2020, Johnson recorded a season-high six combined tackles (five solo) and forced a fumble during a 16–14 win at the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving Day. He was inactive for two games (Weeks 15–16) while listed as active/COVID-19. He finished his sophomore season with a total of 46 combined tackles (37 solo), nine pass deflections, one forced fumble, and one interception in 15 games and 15 starts.

2022

On January 10, 2022, the Chicago Bears fired head coach Matt Nagy and general manager Ryan Pace after finishing the 2021 NFL season with a 6–11 record. On January 27, 2022, former Indianapolis Colts' defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus was hired as the new head coach. Johnson did not attend the team's voluntary offseason training activities and was subsequently demoted to backup behind Kindle Vildor and Kyler Gordon. Defensive coordinator Alan Williams chose to implement a base 3–4 defense. During training camp, Johnson competed to reclaim a starting role against Kindle Vildor, Kyler Gordon, Jaylon Jones, Josh Blackwell, and Lamar Jackson. Head coach Matt Eberflus named Johnson and rookie Kyler Gordon the starting cornerbacks to begin the season.

On September 18, 2022, Johnson exited in the start of the first quarter of a 10–27 loss at the Green Bay Packers after suffering an injury. He injured his quadriceps and missed the next three games (Weeks 2–5). In Week 12, he collected a season-high seven combined tackles (five solo) during a 10–31 loss at the New York Jets. On December 18, 2022, Johnson racked up a season-high six solo tackles and a season-high three pass deflections before exiting during the fourth quarter of a 20–25 loss against the Philadelphia Eagles after injuring his finger. On December 23, 2022, the Chicago Bears officially placed him on injured reserve after breaking his right ring finger. Eberflus confirmed Johnson could have potentially returned, but the team did not want to risk Johnson injuring his finger any further. He subsequently missed the last three games (Weeks 16–18) of the season. He ended the season with 35 combined tackles (28 solo), seven pass defenses, and a forced fumble in 11 games and 11 starts.

2023

Johnson entered training camp slated as a ''de facto'' starting cornerback. Head coach Matt Eberflus named Johnson and Kyler Gordon the starting cornerback duo to begin the regular season. He began the 2023 NFL season in the final year of his rookie contract. He voiced interest in signing a contract extension with the Bears, but neither party could come to an agreement during the preseason or regular season. He was sidelined for two games (Weeks 4–5) after injuring his hamstring. Pro Football Focus graded him as the 10th-best cornerback in the NFL through the first six weeks of the season.

On October 22, 2023, Johnson made three combined tackles (two solo), two pass deflections, a career-high two interceptions, and returned one 39–yards to score the first touchdown of his career during a 30–12 victory against the Las Vegas Raiders. He scored the touchdown after intercepting a pass thrown by Brian Hoyer to wide receiver Davante Adams in the fourth quarter. In Week 9, he collected a season-high four combined tackles (three solo) as the Bears lost 17–24 at the New Orleans Saints. On November 27, 2023, Johnson made two solo tackles, a season-high three pass deflections, and intercepted a pass by Joshua Dobbs to Jordan Addison during a 12–10 win at the Minnesota Vikings. The following week, he had one solo tackle, a pass deflection, and set a career-high with his fourth interception of the season on a pass thrown by Jared Goff during a 28–13 win against the Detroit Lions in Week 14. He finished the season with 36 combined tackles (31 solo), ten pass deflections, a career-high four interceptions, and one touchdown in 14 games and 14 starts. He was named to the 2024 Pro Bowl. Pro Football Focus had Johnson as the highest graded cornerback in 2023 with a career-high overall grade of 90.8 and was also first amongst cornerbacks in coverage grade with 91.0

2024

On March 5, 2024, the Chicago Bears placed the franchise tag on Johnson which was for one–year, $19.80 million. On March 7, 2024, the Chicago Bears and Johnson agreed to a four–year, $76.00 million contract that includes $51.40 million guaranteed, $43.80 million guaranteed upon signing, and an initial signing bonus of $20.00 million. On May 1, 2024, the Bears announced that Johnson had decided to change his uniform number from No. 33 to No. 1. Johnson chose to select No. 1 after it became available to him for the first time following the departure of quarterback Justin Fields.

New defensive coordinator Eric Washington retained Johnson as a starting cornerback and paired him with Tyrique Stevenson. On September 8, 2024, Johnson started in the Chicago Bears' home-opener against the Tennessee Titans and made three solo tackles, a season-high two pass deflections, and intercepted a pass by Will Levis to wide receiver Tyler Boyd during a 24–17 victory. In Week 4, he collected a season-high five solo tackles in a 24–18 win against the Los Angeles Rams. In Week 11, Johnson collected a season-high six combined tackles (four solo) and broke up a pass during a 19–20 loss to the Green Bay Packers. He started all 17 games in 2024 and recorded 53 combined tackles (48 solo), eight pass deflections, and two interceptions. He was named to the Pro Bowl for the second time. Johnson received an overall grade of 71.7 from Pro Football Focus, which ranked 36th amongst his position group.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

References

External links

Chicago Bears bioUtah Utes bio
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Jaylon
1999 births
Living people
Players of American football from Fresno, California
American football cornerbacks
Utah Utes football players
Chicago Bears players
National Conference Pro Bowl players