Raiders Face Bears Breakout CB Jaylon Johnson

The Las Vegas Raiders will face Chicago Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson, who is having a fourth-season breakout in the NFL.

The Las Vegas Raiders are working through several offensive issues as they progress through the 2023 season.

They are coming off of two straight victories, however, and those concerns are not as magnified when the team is winning.

They still exist, however, as the Raiders will go back on the road on Sunday at Soldier Field in Chicago to face the Chicago Bears, a team that has struggled defensively. This game could be a chance for the Raiders to fix some of their offensive problems.

However, there is one player on the Bears’ defense who is in the midst of a breakout season, and that is cornerback Jaylon Johnson, a former second-round selection out of Utah in the 2020 NFL Draft, who is in his fourth season.

Johnson is enjoying a career-best season through the first few games, although he missed two games due to a hamstring injury, but returned against the Minnesota Vikings last week.

Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

In those four games, Johnson has posted 12 total tackles, a tackle for loss and a pass defended. Johnson came onto the scene as a rookie with 44 total tackles and 15 passes defended. He had a good rookie season, but his performance in the following seasons was not at the same level.

Now, Johnson is playing his best football. According to Pro Football Focus, he has allowed only eight completions on 17 targets. The Bears’ secondary has needed a shut-down boundary corner like Johnson for quite some time, and he is giving that to them.

Johnson is 6 feet tall and 196 pounds, and while he has the physical traits of a coverage cornerback, has adapted to Coach Matt Eberflus’ zone coverage scheme. He plays physical, sticky coverage and does not allow much separation from opposing wide receivers.

Johnson will face a tough test this Sunday when he matches up against Davante Adams and Jakobi Meyers of the Raiders. Adams has been excellent as usual, and Meyers is having a career year in his Silver and Black debut.

Coach Josh McDaniels must game plan for Johnson, who is breaking out at the right time for the Bears. He will look to continue his great play this weekend, and the Raiders must be ready for it. 

The Silver and Black will head on the road to take on the Chicago Bears on Sunday, Oct. 22, at 1:05 p.m. EDT/10:05 a.m. PDT.

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