Windy City Gridiron
Last season, the Chicago Bears had three cornerbacks spend all of, or most of, the year on injured reserve. Two of those players appear to be back and ready to go for training camp, Jaylon Johnson and Terell Smith, but the third, Kyler Gordon, has missed time this offseason with what was reported to be a soft tissue injury.
There’s no question the Bears are better with Gordon on the field. His versatility opens things up for Dennis Allen, which is why he was paid so handsomely before the 2025 season. But missing so many games last year and now missing time during the offseason workouts must have head coach Ben Johnson a bit miffed.
“This spring was going to be a springboard for us to get going in the right direction,” Johnson said last month via the Chicago Sun-Times. “So, you know, we’re still working through that. We’re still trying to get that availability piece going. We know he’s a good player when he’s out there, but trust level is a huge thing for this team, for this coaching staff, for the locker room, and you can only develop that trust by being available.”
Gordon’s deal runs through the 2028 season, and contractually, the Bears would take a big dead cap hit if they moved on before that season, so they need him to get right and be one of the best nickels in the game for at least the next two years.
Jaylon Johnson was slowed a bit during the offseason, but earlier this month, in a social media post, his foot specialist declared him to be 100%.
Tyrique Stevenson is probably the odds-on favorite to start at corner opposite Jaylon, but he needs to be more consistent. The flashes have always been there — in 45 games over 3 years, he has 7 interceptions (1 TD), 38 passes defended, 5 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries, and 3 tackles for loss — but it’s the lapses between the flashes that have been the issue, so hopefully that’s in the past.
“The young man that reported last year is so totally different than the young man that’s reporting this year,” Stevenson’s position coach, Al Harris, recently said about him. “He’s focused in, he’s locked in.”
Stevenson’s main competition could be fourth-round pick Malik Muhammad, but don’t be surprised if Muhammad is also working out at nickel.
Josh Blackwell has been a core special teamer for Richard Hightower’s third phase since 2022.
The Bears ended the 2025 season with eight cornerbacks on the 53-man roster, and they opened up week one with six of them. Cam Lewis, whom I mentioned with the safeties, has nickel experience and could factor into the depth of this position group.
Since being a UDFA in 2022, Jaylon Jones has 6 starts across 56 games played for the Bears, and his ability to play outside, nickel, and special teams will likely find him back in...
