Late push sends Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson to the Pro Bowl for the second consecutive season
For the second consecutive season, the Chicago Bears will be sending a player down to Orlando, Florida as part of the NFC Pro Bowl roster.Last season the Bears sent two defenders in cornerback Jaylon Johnson and defensive end Montez Sweat to the Pro Bowl. Johnson is the only member of the team who earned the […]
For the second consecutive season, the Chicago Bears will be sending a player down to Orlando, Florida as part of the NFC Pro Bowl roster.
Last season the Bears sent two defenders in cornerback Jaylon Johnson and defensive end Montez Sweat to the Pro Bowl. Johnson is the only member of the team who earned the honor this time around.
It will be the second consecutive Pro Bowl nomination for Johnson, after not being nominated in each of his first three seasons.
The Bears' lock down cornerback took a slight step back from his incredible 2023 performance but the 25-year-old still handled his business and is getting his credit anyways. Here's what Johnson had to say about his season and whether his overall performance was worthy of Pro Bowl recognition on Wednesday.
"I think it's been solid," Johnson explained. "I think it's hard with limited targets… it's hard to make plays on the ball when you barely get targeted. That in itself, I think that's what gets you Pro Bowl votes, making plays, having those interceptions, and things like that. Overall, I think I played solid, definitely could have done some things better, but I feel like I did a lot of good too."
After having a career-high four interceptions in 2023, Johnson only came away with two interceptions during the 2024 season with one game left to be played on Sunday. But Johnson's right, it's hard to make plays on the ball when you don't get targeted, and not getting targeted should be the main goal for any defensive back. Thankfully, the voters realized that.
Among the 44 cornerbacks who played 750+ snaps entering Week 18, Johnson had the 3rd-fewest targets with 49 and allowed only 30 receptions for 387 yards and two touchdowns on those targets.
A late push in the voting ultimately paved the way for Johnson to get a second nod. On Tuesday, the league released the Top-10 vote getters by position among fan votes. Johnson was not included on that list, but still ended up being one of the eight cornerbacks selected thanks to the support of his peers and other coaches around the league.
From the NFC, Johnson will be a starter for the conference and will alongside Carolina Panthers' Jaycee Horn, Minnesota Vikings' Byron Murphy, and Seattle Seahawks' Devon Witherspoon at the position.
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Final game of the season.
