Bears fill a major need with the open roster spot in a way that will make Dennis Allen happy, without having to use any draft picks
The Chicago Bears signed C.J. Gardner-Johnson to the active roster.
Over the last few weeks, the Chicago Bears have been decimated be injuries on the defensive side of the ball and the losses were finally too much to overcome in Week 8 against the Baltimore Ravens and backup quarterback Tyler Huntley. A game in which the Bears allowed 30 points.
Going into the game, Chicago was without its top three cornerbacks. Pro Bowl cornerback Jaylon Johnson and nickel cornerback Kyler Gordon each are on the injured reserve and outside cornerback Tyrique Stevenson was also forced to miss the game due to a shoulder injury.
In their place, the Bears turned to Nahshon Wright, Nick McCloud, Josh Blackwell, and Jaylon Jones at the cornerback position. During the game, the Bears also suffered some losses up-front, really putting defensive coordinator Dennis Allen’s unit in a bind.
This week, the Bears went to work addressing the defense ahead of Week 9. Second-year defensive end Austin Booker was activated back to the active roster for the first time all season to help off the edge with the loss of Dominique Robinson (short-term) and Shemar Turner (season-ending injury). And with an open roster spot still available, the Bears have finally added a new defensive back.
Bears sign DB C.J. Gardner-Johnson to the active roster ahead of Week 9
Earlier in the week, I spoke with Adam Holt of A to Z Sports New Orleans to discuss a trade proposal involving Saints cornerback Alontae Taylor. The reasoning was simple. The Bears need a short-term rental to address the injury concerns in the secondary and ideally it’d be someone with knowledge of Dennis Allen’s system.
Instead, the Bears went another direction but with the similar goal in mind by signing free agent defensive back C.J. Gardner-Johnson. A low-risk move that didn’t require using any future draft picks and it could work out perfectly for what Chicago needed.
Gardner-Johnson spent the first three years of his career in New Orleans under the Bears’ current defensive coordinator totaling five interceptions, 3.0 sacks, and 161 combined tackles in 43 career games with the Saints.
In those three seasons under Allen, Gardner-Johnson played 66.5 percent of his defensive snaps in the slot with 114 total snaps as a pass rusher as well. Sound familiar? That’s because Allen used Gardner-Johnson in the same way the Bears used Gordon in the nickel position.
Gordon is expected to miss at least three more games with this latest stint on the IR. Although head coach Ben Johnson noted the team hopes Gordon’s injury is in the “short-term” variety. But, the addition of Gardner-Johnson gives Chicago an experienced player to play in Gordon’s role while he recovers from his injury.
All things considered, this is the best possible outcome the Bears could have explored. The only downside to Gardner-Johnson is that he’s been traded or released from three different teams this season. He’s a passionate and out-spoken player but his latest release from the Baltimore Ravens, and the Houston Texans before that, can be tied to how the team was using him defensively and his desire to want to blitz more.
Chicago will be hoping a reunion with his former defensive coordinator in a role he enjoys playing in will work out well for all parties involved throughout the rest of the season.
Chicago Bears News
Bears add roster reinforcements to the defensive line by activating Austin Booker and signing another former Packers defender
The Chicago Bears were in need of some defensive line help after recent injuries.
