Bears' Jaylon Johnson becomes Top 10 pick in 2020 NFL redraft

Homegrown stars, players who are drafted by an organization and sign a contract extension to stick around, have been in somewhat short supply for the Chicago Bears over the past decade. It seems that the team has either consistently drafted the wrong player or that player has to go elsewhere to get his first big payday, as is the case with linebacker Roquan Smith.

Cornerback Jaylon Johnson is the major exception. A second-rounder from the 2020 NFL draft, he earned his first Pro Bowl nod as well as a second-team All-Pro award in 2023, then signed a lucrative yet team-friendly contract with the Bears that offseason. Johnson rewarded the organization's faith in him by earning his second straight Pro Bowl award in 2024 and landing in ESPN's ranking of the top ten NFL cornerbacks.

Suffice it to say that Johnson has far outplayed his draft positioning, and a recent redraft from Pro Football Focus confirms that. PFF has Jaylon Johnson being drafted 9th overall by the Jacksonville Jaguars in a 2020 NFL redraft, based on PFF grades and data. The Jaguars had originally selected cornerback C.J. Henderson here, but in this revisiting of the draft, they land a far superior defender.

Justifying this pick, the PFF staff writes: "Henderson ultimately lasted 10 games in Jacksonville before getting traded. The Jaguars instead draft a top-five cornerback in the league in Johnson, the third-most-valuable cornerback in the NFL over the past two seasons, according to PFF's WAR metric."

This is a more than fair draft placement for Johnson when you look at the rest of the 2020 draft class. In this redraft, the only players who are drafted ahead of Johnson are five quarterbacks, Tristan Wirfs, Justin Jefferson, and CeeDee Lamb. So, arguably, the two best receivers in the NFL right now and the best right tackle, along with five-star quarterbacks.

No doubt about it, the Bears are lucky to have Johnson in their secondary. The only real blackmark on his record is his injury history, which has popped up again in training camp. The Bears announced that Johnson would be out a few weeks at the start of training camp, though now his status for Week 1 appears to be up in the air. Hopefully, he can get healthy and play in what will be Chicago's most pivotal season in years.

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