Jaylon Johnson's Decline Has the Bears Facing a Hard Call on His $76 Million Contract

One highly paid defender is weighing down the Bears with his level of play and his contract.

Chicago Bears CB Jaylon Johnson after allowing a touchdown at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Mike Dinovo-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

A popular saying in the football world is that the NFL stands for "Not For Long". It's a notoriously results-based league, with popular players and coaches getting the axe if a cold stretch runs too long. Unfortunately for the Chicago Bears, one such player has just about hit that point after their disastrous Week 5 loss to the Green Bay Packers.

Two-time Pro Bowl cornerback Jaylon Johnson, the longest tenured member of Chicago's defense, is playing on the third year of his four-year, $76 million contract extension. The cornerback who signed that contract in 2024, however, is not the cornerback that we see on the field anymore, and it cannot be tolerated for another season. Despite all the good he did for the Bears in the past, the time is nigh for Johnson and the Bears to part ways.

Jaylon Johnson's numbers don't lie

Chicago Bears CB Jaylon Johnson reacts after a touchdown by the Green Bay Packers. Mandatory Credit: Mike Dinovo-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

While this may have been an unthinkable opinion just one year ago, it has become a regrettable reality. Through five weeks of the 2026 NFL season, one that Johnson himself views as a contract year, he's allowing a 118.8 passer rating when targeted, according to Pro Football Focus (PFF). He's been charged with three missed tackles, which is good for 63rd out of 155 cornerbacks, and has allowed 18 receptions, 86th out of 155 cornerbacks.

And that's not all. According to Pro Football Network's impact rankings, Johnson has earned just a 57.9 grade. For reference, a 75.0 grade is considered league average. Tyrique Stevenson, another Bear in danger of losing his job, grades out at a 65.0 while fourth-round rookie Malik Muhammad is earning an impressive 77.3 grade.

As bad as he's been all season, however, Week 5 had to be rock-bottom. Johnson seemed to be a part of almost every Packers highlight, from this touchdown pass to Christian Watson, which was the dagger despite almost the entire second half left to go, to this big gainer by Matthew Golden. Even in the run game, Johnson got obliterated on this eight-yard touchdown run by Marshawn Lloyd.

The Bottom Line

Chicago Bears CB Jaylon Johnson runs onto the field before a game at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

It always sucks to see a player lose his mojo, but that's what has happened with Jaylon Johnson. One wonders if the groin injury that plagued him throughout 2025 never fully healed, and if his mobility has been permanently capped. Some Bears fans suspect that Johnson was only good in the zone-heavy defenses favored by Matt Eberflus and is now struggling in Dennis Allen's man-heavy scheme.

Whatever the reason, the Bears are paying Johnson an annual average of $19 million to be the second-team All-Pro cornerback that he was in 2023, and they're not getting anywhere close to a fair return on that investment. According to Spotrac, the Bears can free up $16 million in salary cap space for 2027 by releasing Jaylon Johnson either pre- or post-6/1, and that needs to be at the top of general manager Ryan Poles' to-do list in the offseason.

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