Jaylon Johnson Sees Positive Signs
Cornerback Jaylon Johnson's contract fate remains up in the air but it would seem to be trending in positive direction for the first time.
The idea Johnson would be traded seems to have vanished after ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported last week the Bears have not been shopping him around the league. However, the idea they could lose him in free agency next spring always exists unless he gets a contract extension.
After the game and two interceptions Sunday, Johnson was making it sound as if the Bears still weren't trying hard enough to sign him.
"I've been wanting to get to the (negotiating) table," Johnson said. "I mean at the and of the day it's, I know who I am and I know I can play this game at a high level and I feel like I deserve to be paid like that."
He also said "The value is going up for sure."
However, during his weekly spot on WSCR's Parkins & Spiegel Show, Johnson on Monday painted a better picture about negotiations with the Bears.
"Yeah, I mean, it's a process," he told Parkins & Spiegel. "It's a process but things are, I would say, starting to hopefully, starting to ramp up.
"We'll see kind of where things go, assessing this next week and less than a half just before the trade deadline. Like you never know what can happen beforehand. But just looking forward to see where things go because, I mean, to me it's different than just talking, when they're just like, 'OK, let's try to figure something out, let's try to figure something out,' versus things getting done. So, I mean, I'm just looking forward to see what I can get done."
Johnson admitted their are numerous possibilities, including being traded before the Oct. 31 deadline—although this seems unlikely based on the report by ESPN and also by his play. Also, the replacement for him would be Terell Smith and he is currently shelved with mono.
"Theres so many different things that can happen, possibilities," Johnson said.
Possible resolutions could include a deal now or after the trade deadline. He could play out the season and leave or not leave in free agency. The Bears could get him a contract just before free agency begins. He also could get a franchise or transition tag, which can be quite expensive for a cornerback.
Overthecap.com projected franchise tags at $19.475 million for cornerbacks in 2024 and the transition tag at $16.8 million.
Cole Kmet just received a four-year, $50 million deal just before the season and a quality cornerback could be expected to bring in a great deal more than the average of $12.5 million a year a tight end did.
Cleveland's Denzel Ward is currently the highest paid cornerback by average annual salary on a five-year deal at $20.1 million. Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore is at $19.52 million and Baltimore's Marlon Humphrey at $19.5 million. Dallas' injured Trevon Diggs signed a new deal for $19.4 million a year.
Those are all five-year deals. Green Bay's Jaire Alexander is at $21.4 million a year, but his was a four-year deal.
Having the two interceptions on Sunday definitely didn't hurt Johnson's cause because it's been takeaways where Johnson needed improvement. Those were the second and third interceptions of his career.
In terms of analytics, Johnson has a career-best 28.4 passer rating against when targeted right now, according to Sportradar. He has allowed 52.9% completions when targeted. Pro Football Focus has given him the second highest overall grade for all cornerbacks (85.5) behind only Seattle's Devon Witherspoon (88.5). In terms of pass coverage, PFF grades Johnson No. 1 in the league at 88.1.
It truly does look like the Bears waited on this and Johnson came out the winner by betting on himself.
Eberflus' defense seems to have staged a turnaround in the last three games and Johnson is at the center of it.
"Yeah, he's done everything we've asked," Eberflus said. "He's been really good in training camp. He's worked every single day during that process. He's worked his craft. You know, he's done a really good job of improving his craft.
"You know he's always been really good in terms of being sticky at the top of routes and being able to close distances and make plays on the ball. Now he's starting to make those interceptions, which is positive, right? Obviously getting takeaways is a big thing, so, and the tackling is better. You know there is no house guests on our defense. So everybody tackles. We'll be a good tackling team when our corners tackle and he's done a good job of that."
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