Most important Chicago Bears in 2025: No. 4 Jaylon Johnson

The wait is almost over. The Bears return to the practice field July 23 when they hold their first training camp practice under new head coach Ben Johnson.

Over two weeks, Shaw Local is counting down the top 10 most important Bears heading into the 2025 season. Importance is obviously subjective. But for our purposes, it comes down to these questions:

Are the Bears worse off without the player? Does the player have untapped potential or past greatness to live up to? Is his story going to be one fans follow closely this season?

The best player on the team isn’t always the most important, but he certainly can be.

Here’s a look at No. 4 on the list. Check back the rest of the week to see the top 10 most important Bears.

No. 4 Jaylon Johnson

Position: Cornerback

Experience: Sixth season

Looking back: Bears general manager Ryan Poles inherited a mixed bag in terms of the roster when he took over in 2022. He decided to trade away what he could to replenish the team’s draft capital and started a rebuild. But there were some pieces he wanted to hold on to from former Bear GM Ryan Pace’s tenure.

Jaylon Johnson was one of those pieces. Johnson showed potential when Poles came to the Bears and had to prove himself at the beginning of former head coach Matt Eberflus’ tenure in 2022. Since then, Johnson has developed into one of the top cornerbacks in the NFL.

Johnson took a major step in 2023 when he played for a new contract. He intercepted four passes that year and defended 10 passes, earning second-team All-Pro honors after he became a lockdown defender. Poles rewarded Johnson with a four-year extension in 2024.

That high level of play continued last season, even if the numbers dipped as the season progressed. Johnson finished with two interceptions and eight passes defended, earning a Pro Bowl nod.

Looking ahead: Johnson has thrived in situations when he’s needed to prove himself during his career. He’ll get another chance to do that this season in a defense where he can show off his talent.

New Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen runs a defense in which the defensive line consistently pressures opposing quarterbacks. That forces the secondary to play a lot of man-to-man coverage, especially press man-to-man. Cornerbacks specifically are required to keep up and shut down the opposing team’s top wide receivers, usually from the line of scrimmage.

That should create plenty of opportunities for Johnson to make an impact. Johnson has proven that he can be a lockdown defender with his speed and instinct. Allen was excited to have Johnson as a weapon in a talented secondary.

“I think Johnson has proven that he can play at an exceptional level in this league,” Allen said during the offseason. “I’m excited about having the opportunity to work with him. He’s a guy that when he was coming out of college, that we had high grades on. I’m excited about working with him.”

There are multiple levels to Allen’s defense working in Chicago. The Bears’ defensive line will need to create pressure more than it did last season. But the secondary will also need to lock down targets from the snap while the pocket collapses around the quarterback.

The Bears’ secondary has shown how elite it can be in the past. The unit intercepted 22 passes in 2023, which tied for the most in the NFL. But that number dropped to 11 last season, which tied the Bears for 19th, after the defensive line failed to create consistent pressure.

For Allen’s defense to work with the Bears, the secondary will need to get back to that 2023 level. The group will go as far Johnson leads it.

Previous installments of the top 10 most important Bears

• No. 10 Gervon Dexter
• No. 9 Drew Dalman
• No. 8 Dayo Odeyingbo
• No. 7 D’Andre Swift
• No. 6 Rome Odunze
• No. 5 Joe Thuney