Chicago Bears: Five young players who could shine in 2021

Jaylon Johnson – Cornerback

As much as everyone likes to hate on Ryan Pace for his questionable draft picks over the years, he has also found some great players at a great value. Jaylon Johnson has been a gem of a pick by Pace and has the potential to be a true shutdown corner for the Bears going forward. He is amongst the NFL leaders in pass breakups and has been the best rookie cornerback by far this year, outplaying high draft picks such as Jeff Okudah, A.J. Terrell, and Damon Arnette.

The Chicago Bears could potentially cut Kyle Fuller in the offseason solely for cap purposes. Fuller has been amazing this year and it would be nice to have him back next year. Still, the team might be willing to let him go knowing Jaylon Johnson could be just as good or even better going forward.

Every game, quarterbacks are targeting Johnson because they know he is a rookie and they can exploit that. Still, Johnson has held his ground against some great receivers throughout the season and has been a perfect compliment to Kyle Fuller.

He has had his share of mistakes and bad plays, but he is super young and learning to improve his technique and footwork. If he can improve on his rookie year, the Bears might have found themselves their number one cornerback for the future.

In 2021, Jaylon Johnson has a chance to be the Bears’ top cornerback if Kyle Fuller is not on the team. I think he will be ready to be that guy and could assert himself as one of the top young cornerbacks in the league. A breakout year for him next season would not be a surprise.