Jaylon Johnson on missing early round of OTAs: I’m a dad first

With Father’s Day right around the corner, Chicago Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson deserves a tip of the cap for having his priorities straight.

Johnson met with the media following Wednesday’s OTAs practice and confirmed his absence from the early round of offseason workouts had nothing to do with his contract. Instead, it was about being a dad.

“Not even close,” Johnson said about whether his failure to appear was about his contract. “No. Anybody who knows me (knows) that’s not my character. I think at the end of the day, for me – I wouldn’t even say holding out. Just having prior priorities. At the end of the day, everybody knows I have a 3-year-old daughter back at home in California, and I’m a dad before I’m anything else. Before I’m a football player. Before I’m anything, I’m a dad first.”

The Bears have prioritized and emphasized character in their roster decisions this offseason. Johnson, who’s in the final year of his rookie contract, certainly appears to have the high character GM Ryan Poles values.

“I take pride in being a dad. I’m not just any old type of dad that just comes and sees their kid whenever. I’m present,” Johnson said. “I’m spending time. I’m putting my heart into my daughter. When it comes to the offseason, I take that serious. I communicated that to the coaches and they understood and hopefully respected it. At the end of the day, I’m going to be there for my daughter because they can find another corner. My daughter can’t find another dad. I take pride in that.”

You’ll be hard-pressed to find a better answer from a Chicago Bears player than what Jaylon Johnson offered Wednesday. In fact, Johnson’s words should be a mantra all dads try to live by.

Indeed, Johnson’s decision to spend time with his daughter won’t be the reason why the Bears choose not to offer him a second contract. Instead, he has to prove to Poles that he deserves a payday consistent with the top cornerbacks in the NFC. And to earn a deal that could pay north of $18 million per season, he’ll need to have more ball production in 2023.

Johnson has started all 39 games he’s played for the Bears since 2020 but only has one career interception. There’s no denying his top-shelf coverage ability, but he’ll have to generate more turnovers to get the big-time money.

“I just go out and continue to be who I am,” Johnson said. “Continue to be the player I am, keep getting better, keep finding ways to improve my game. And really, just find ways to win. For me, I’m not too worried about it.”