The Bears head into Thursday Night Football with a chance for Jaylon Johnson to draw a favorable matchup at just the right moment.
Chicago is taking on the New England Patriots on a short week, and one of the key battles to watch is Patriots wide receiver A.J. Brown against Johnson.
That matchup has looked a lot different for Johnson this season than it did in years past. He has had more rough snaps than clean ones, has been beaten often in coverage, and plenty of Bears fans have already started questioning whether he should be benched or even moved on from.
But Week 7 may offer him a way back into the conversation.
Brown, too, arrives with momentum missing. He injured his right ankle in the Patriots’ first game against the Seattle Seahawks and landed on IR.
He returned in New England’s Week 6 win over the New York Jets, but the comeback did not go smoothly. Brown caught just three of his 10 targets for 27 yards, lost a fumble, and dropped a career-high three passes in the win.
That kind of outing is exactly the sort of thing Johnson needs after his own early-season slide. So far this year, he has allowed a passer rating of 115.1, which is down three points from last week.
Pro Football Focus has him at an overall grade of 44.1, putting him 94th among 102 eligible cornerbacks. His coverage grade sits at 40.9, also 94th, while his run-defense grade is 61.4, which ranks 58th.
None of that means Johnson is suddenly in the clear. Brown is still the kind of physically gifted receiver who can beat any corner in the league. But right now, Brown does not look like a receiver operating at full confidence, even if he is working his way back after missing four games.
There is also a little more evidence that Johnson is starting to settle in. In the Week 6 win over the Atlanta Falcons, the Bears’ secondary helped hold the passing game to only 225 yards. Johnson also gave up fewer explosive plays than he did in the loss to the Green Bay Packers.
He is still not the player he was in 2023 and 2024, but the improvement is there, and it is beginning to show up on film. Against New England, that trend gets another test.
With the , the Bears should have an advantage up front and force Drake Maye into some bad passes. Johnson will have help around him, but this could be the chance for him to slow Brown down and show he is getting back to Pro Bowl form.
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