Even when he was sidelined by a hamstring injury, Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson had Vikings All-Pro wide receiver Justin Jefferson in his sights.
“That was definitely a matchup I was looking forward to. I was watching film last week,” Johnson said. “He’s been somebody I’ve been wanting [to play against]. I was hurt last year. He was hurt this year. So I ain’t played him since what — ’21? So I was definitely looking forward to it. But I’ll see him in the future.”
With the expected return of Johnson, slot cornerback Kyler Gordon and safety Eddie Jackson, the Bears’ secondary could be at full strength for the first time since the season opener against the Vikings on Sunday. But Jefferson won’t be there. He was put on injured reserve this week after straining his hamstring against the Chiefs on Sunday.
That might be a disappointment for Johnson, but it’s a break for the Bears. Jefferson is arguably the best receiver in the NFL, after leading the league with 128 receptions and 1,809 yards last season, with eight touchdowns.
Since he entered the NFL as the Vikings’ first-round draft pick (22nd overall) in 2020, Jefferson leads the league in yards (5,396) and yards per game (98.1) — more than Davante Adams (4,885, 93.9), Tyreek Hill (4,876, 90.3) and Stefon Diggs (4,709, 87.2).
Jefferson has been so good that even Bears coach Matt Eberflus acknowledged the reality that not having to defend him makes the Bears’ defensive challenge a little less complicated.
“It allows you to play more basic – more solid on both sides as opposed to tilting your coverage one way or the other,” Eberflus said. It allows you to play your base way that you play against a normal guy rather than playing against a guy that’s elite, in the top two or three in the league, which he is.”
The Vikings still have capable receivers for quarterback Kirk Cousins, including Jordan Addison, K.J. Osborn and tight end T.J. Hockenson. But not having Jefferson makes a difference.
“That changes a whole lot,” Johnson said. “They already lost [running back] Dalvin Cook and he was pretty much their guy in the run game, and now they los their No. 1 target in the pass game for the last four years.
“So they definitely have some stepping up to do for the other receivers and I’m sure they’re looking forward to the opportunity to get some targets thrown their way. Because with 18 [Jefferson] out there, it’s a different ballgame.”
That still presents a challenge for the Bears’ defense, who have been burned by the likes of the Vikings’ Osborn (five catches, 117 yards last season) and Ihmir Smith-Marsette (3-103) and the Lions’ Hockenson (7-84) and Quintez Cephus (4-83) in recent seasons. There are many ways to beat the Bears’ defense.
“I know they’re going to come in hungry,” Johnson said of Jefferson’s supporting cast.
The Bears likely will counter with a secondary that should be whole for the first time since Week 1, and held up pretty well with back-ups — cornerbacks Greg Stroman Jr., Terell Smith and Jaylon Jones and safety Elijah Hicks. Stroman had an interception and a sack and Smith had a forced fumble and fumble recovery in a 40-20 victory over the Commanders last week.
But Jackson, Johnson and Gordon are starters for a reason.
“That’ll bring the energy, bring the juice. I think the DBs last week [against the Commanders] started that off. They played a very solid game holding that down for us. So we definitely have to get back and up the energy, up the execution. Just get back what we were missing. We don’t have time for any mess-ups. We’ve got that all out of the way. We have to come back and execute at a high level.”
