Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson has missed the first two weeks of organized team activities (OTAs), which has been the talk of the offseason program.
There have been questions about whether Johnson will be in attendance for mandatory minicamp, and Johnson cleared that up during an appearance on ESPN’s Keyshawn, JWill & Max.
Johnson said he will “for sure” be at OTAs next week ahead of mandatory minicamp the following week.
There’s been plenty of speculation about why Johnson has skipped OTAs, including related to a potential contract extension, but Johnson explained it was due to personal reasons.
“I know I had a lot of things off the field going on,” he said, noting he’s been spending time with his young daughter back in Fresno, Calif. He’s also been working on fundraisers for his non-profit, Kevvys Vision Project, in honor of his friend, Kev’Vion Schrubb, who was killed by gun violence back in 2021.
While Johnson hasn’t physically been at practice, he’s been staying involved virtually. Defensive passing game coordinator Jon Hoke said that Johnson has been participating in meetings via Zoom and watches practice film. He also texts questions on a regular basis to Hoke.
Johnson will rejoin his teammates next week at Halas Hall for the final four OTA practices before mandatory minicamp runs June 13-15.
