Chicago Bears OTAs Preview: The real takeaway from Jaylon Johnson’s absence during the voluntary portion of the offseason
The Chicago Bears will open OTAs on Wednesday and one name is not expected to be on the field with the rest of the team in former Pro Bowl cornerback Jaylon Johnson. Does it really matter?
When NFL teams kick off organized team activities in late spring, the players not on the field usually spark more buzz than the players actually on the field. And for the Chicago Bears, a big story already started unfolding with cornerback Jaylon Johnson.
When the Bears open OTAs on Wednesday, the team’s longest-tenured defensive player is not expected to be on the field with the rest of the team. It’s also worth mentioning that OTAs are voluntary. Players are not required to be in attendance until mandatory minicamp, which starts on June 9 for the Bears.
Even still, when news broke late last week that Johnson wasn’t going to be in attendance for OTAs, fans weren’t thrilled by the news. Let’s break down why it matters, and why it doesn’t.
What to make of Jaylon Johnson’s absence from the Chicago Bears OTAs
This has nothing to do with any kind of contract holdout
Most times when there’s a notable absence from voluntary – and even mandatory – workouts, it has something to do with a contract situation. While we’ll undoubtedly here about those situations around the league this week, that’s not the case with Johnson.
Johnson signed a four-year, $76 million contract extension with the Bears back in 2024 after a headache of a process and still has two years remaining on that deal. It is worth mentioning that Johnson will not have any guaranteed money remaining following the 2026 season, which is usually the point when teams start considering a new deal or parting ways to save cap space.
So, for the sake of the 2026 offseason, Johnson’s absence isn’t contract related (even if he’s expressed a previous desire to revisit negotiations). It’s also worth noting that Johnson’s skipped voluntary workouts in previous offseasons, including last season despite having a new coaching staff and defensive scheme.
Last year’s injury situation makes Johnson’s absence more notable in 2026
As previously stated, Johnson skipped OTAs last year and arrived to the facilities for the start of mandatory minicamp in June. However, while working out during training outside of the team facilities before training camp, Johnson suffered a leg injury that forced him to miss the entirety of camp and the opening game of the regular season.
In Week 2, Johnson made his debut and played 20 snaps before re-injuring his groin. Johnson underwent surgery and was placed on the injured reserve for nine games before making his return in Week 13.
“It’s almost like we’re starting over completely again this spring in terms of relationship building and starting off on the right track,” head coach Ben Johnson said of Johnson and also Kyler Gordon, while adding the Bears “need them out there.”
The last thing the Bears need is Johnson to suffer another injury away from the facility that would force him to miss even more time. It’s already bad enough the Bears are dealing with injury concerns again with Gordon.
Opportunity is there for other players to impress in Johnson’s absence
In the meantime, it’s next man up for Chicago’s cornerback room. Which is a similar situation from the majority of the offseason last year, when 2025 free agent addition Nahshon Wright proved himself as a capable outside cornerback in Johnson’s absence. Wright went on to earn a starting job for himself and played at a Pro Bowl level.
This week, all eyes will be on Tyrique Stevenson, the team’s former second-round pick entering the final year of his rookie contract. Stevenson’s played at a starting level throughout his career but has been too inconsistent to trust as a weekly starter. Coaches have already seen a different energy from him going into OTAs.
“You know what I would say this for [Stevenson], the young man that reported last year is so totally different than the young man that’s reporting this year,” DBs coach Al Harris told reporters last Thursday. “He’s focused in, he’s locked in. The small details, you can just tell by the questions that he’s asking, the small details he’s honing in on, whether it’s his movements, whether it’s, ‘Hey coach, just get me to the ball,’ he’s asking the right questions, and he’s staying focused in. Not that he wasn’t doing that, but I just see that level raised this year.”
Beyond Stevenson, the Bears will have fourth-round rookie Malik Muhammad and Terell Smith vying for starting positions. Muhammad will also be training in the nickel with Gordon dealing with a soft tissue injury while Smith is coming off a torn patellar tendon.
We’ll see which players rise to the opportunity to impress the coaching staff without the team’s top two cornerbacks on the field.