The Chicago Bears are attempting to build a team that compete for a Super Bowl as soon as 2024 and are expected to select USC QB Caleb Williams with the first overall pick in April’s NFL Draft.
While the Bears brass is betting all the cards Williams will be able to get plugged in and immediately adapt to the NFL, a strong performance from the defense will make his life a whole lot easier.
After trading for pass rusher Montez Sweat in a deal with the Washington Commanders halfway through last season, the Chicago Bears defense began to shine.
The pass rushers were finding success at getting to opposing QBs, while cornerback Jaylon Johnson emerged as one of the premier shutdown defensive backs in the NFL.
Last week, the Chicago Bears inked Johnson to a four-year contract extension worth $76 million with $54 million of that contract guaranteed.
The Bears have now locked up three major facets of their defense, signing Montez Sweat at the trade deadline to a deal worth $98 million, Tremaine Edmunds to a deal worth $72 million last summer, and now Johnson. Along with DJ Moore’s $60 million contract, too, the Bears are spending a lot of money.
Jaylon Johnson’s contract is frontloaded in yearly cash, but backloaded in cap hits, giving the Bears financial flexibility this offseason to chase blue-chip players on the free market. As it stands, the Bears have the fifth-most cap space in the NFL, owning $57.5 million in cap space, according to Spotrac.
General manager Ryan Poles was creative with Johnson’s contract. He converted $20 million of the contract into signing bonuses, all of which are spread out over $5 million annually. Johnson will earn a base salary of just under $8 million in his first year. His first-year dead cap value is around $43 million.
Johnson was one of the most significant boxes the front office had to check this offseason. They were adamant about his return from the start. Earlier this week, the Bears placed the franchise tag on him. And 48 hours later, they found common ground on a deal, clearing $6.8 million in cap space from the tag.
Chicago Bears Star CB Jaylon Johnson Opens Up About Sex Addiction In Press Conference For Extension
As Johnson landed in Chicago Sunday night, he experienced a wave of emotions unlike anything he had felt before according to the team’s official website.
Knowing he would be inking a four-year contract extension with the Bears Monday morning, Johnson felt a heightened sense of pride, gratitude and reflection — not just for how far he has come, but for all that led him to this point.
“Touching down made me think about everything,” Johnson told ChicagoBears.com, “just how far I’ve come from Pop Warner to high school to college to now. Just the whole process — I’ve been playing football a long time. To get to this point, it’s a surreal moment that I can’t truly put words to. But I’m definitely loving the position I’m in and what the future looks like here.”
In a surprising move, Jaylon Johnson revealed he has been struggling with a sex addiction in his Monday press conference to make his new contract official.
“It’s bigger than me,” Johnson said. “One, I’m not the only one going through it. Two, it’s OK to go through stuff. It’s OK to not be perfect. I feel like people put us literally on this pedestal to get up here and talk, ‘Oh, well guys are this, guys are that.’ Man, we’re human too. We go through things. Everybody goes through things. But I feel like people feel like you got to put a mask on, you got to cover it up. No, it’s OK to go through things. It’s OK to seek help. It’s OK to be vulnerable.”
The Chicago Bears star CB said his battle has strengthened his faith.
“Through my journey with God, it’s like his light shines when you’re in the dark,” Johnson said. “But when you’re trying to be on the pedestal and you’re trying to take all the glory and you’re trying to be something you’re not, that’s when you take away who God really is. You got to go low to really let God’s work shine. That’s when his miracles are done. That’s when his work is done.”
Jaylon Johnson admitted he’s gotten therapy for his addiction and said facing his addiction and opening up about it is harder than any football game he could play.
“Therapy was harder than anything. Everybody talks about playing football games. That’s easy. Just going to see my therapist on off days, I’m like, damn, that’s where I’m uncomfortable. But just throughout the week, just preparing myself mentally, people talking about contracts, I wasn’t worried about that. I was worried about trying to get myself right. For me, it’s bigger than the contracts. Me being who I need to be as a man, who I need to be as a father, as a partner, as a future husband, I mean, that’s more important. That’s something that will last way longer than this podium, way longer than this platform.”
In an age where mental health is becoming more talked about, this is a brave move from the Chicago Bears star.
