Latest news with #JaylonJohnson
Forbes
a day ago
- Sport
- Forbes
Bears' Fixture Cole Kmet Hopes To Help His Team Create Stability
Chicago Bears tight end Cole Kmet (85) works out during practice at NFL football training camp, ... More Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in Lake Forest, Ill. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) Cole Kmet is only 26 but an old man when he's on the job at Halas Hall. He's in his sixth season with the Bears, which gives he and Jaylon Johnson seniority over everyone else on the roster. Life comes at you fast in the NFL, and Kmet has learned this the hard way. He's playing for his fourth fifth head coach in seven years, counting his time under Brian Kelly at Notre Dame. He was drafted by Ryan Pace, who preceded Ryan Poles as the Chicago general manager, and has played for Bears teams compiling a 29-55 record. The Bears gave Kmet a four-year, $50-million contract after the 2022 season, which was Poles' first season in charge. They selected tight end Colston Loveland in the first round of the '25 draft, which focused attention on how only one more season of Kmet's extension is guaranteed. It officially runs through 2027 but carries a dead-cap hit of only $3.2 million if he is released after '25. Given the short life span of NFL players, Kmet wouldn't be the first who looked at such circumstances from a selfish perspective. But new Bears coach Ben Johnson says Kmet has been a pleasure to get to know. Johnson praises Kmet's 'positive energy' as he looks for ways to help quarterback Caleb Williams and others while learning yet another new offense. 'You could tell instantly when he was around the other offensive players, the rest of the team, there's an instant respect level,' Johnson told reporters at Halas Hall before training camp. 'He's done things the right way for a long time, and so it's been great, not just him learning the offense, but helping others in the process as well.' Kmet called Johnson and his staff 'relentless on the details' during mini-camps and OTAs. '(I'm) not saying other coaches weren't detailed, but it's like an obsession with … him,' he told beat reporters. Kmet could seem like something of a forgotten man when pre-season games roll around in August. The focus will be on Loveland, who was one of Michigan's top weapons on the 2023 national championship team, as well as a suddenly deep stable of wide receivers. DJ Moore will be pushed by 2024 first-round pick Rome Odunze and '25 second-rounder Luther Burden III to see who emerges as the top target in Johnson's offense. Loveland has been limited after the shoulder surgery he underwent in January but should be able to cut it loose in time for the exhibition schedule, if not a pair of joint practices. Johnson was known for using multiple tight ends while serving as Detroit's offensive coordinator, so it should be fun to see the plays he draws up for both tight ends. Kmet, who is considered a solid blocker, had a career-high 73 catches in 2023. That was only 23 fewer than Moore as the Bears often looked for Justin Fields to run the ball. While Kmet caught 10 passes from Williams against Indianapolis in Week 3, that combination only occasionally clicked during the 5-12 season. Kmet finished with 47 catches for 474 yards, including six games when he was either shut out or had just one catch. Yet he maintains a fair amount of respect around the league. Pro Football Focus ranks him 29th among NFL tight ends entering this season, six spots believe Loveland. It graded him out 42nd best last season, his lowest ranking since he was a rookie. He was ranked 11th after the productive '23 season. Kmet was a year away from free agency when Poles rewarded him with his extension. He carries a full salary cap hit of $11.6 million each of the next three seasons but looks like a candidate for a possible restructuring. Based on early impressions, he's going to do everything he can to avoid being deemed expendable. While he's not really an old dog, don't be surprised if he finds some new tricks working with Johnson and Loveland.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Brad Biggs: Optimism for Bears is usually rooted in change. 5 reasons the latest reboot might succeed.
CHICAGO — Optimism can be found in many ways, but the only way it has been consistently produced at Halas Hall over the last decade or so is by change. Changing the general manager. Changing the head coach. Changing coordinators. Changing the quarterback. Call it the cycle of football for the Chicago Bears, one that has left them in a series of reboots — the latest of which started in earnest Tuesday when veterans reported for training camp, with the first practice Wednesday morning. GM Ryan Poles expressed gratitude for a contract extension that aligns him with first-year coach Ben Johnson, and he outlined some recent roster moves — notably Pro Bowl cornerback Jaylon Johnson landing on the non-football injury list with a leg issue that will sideline him at least a few weeks. Then Poles turned over the show to the man charged with taking an improved roster to a higher level. 'There's a lot of excitement around the program and I think rightfully so,' Ben Johnson said. 'There's a lot of talent on the roster. Looking forward to seeing what leaders come out of the locker room and really lead the charge here for us going into the fall.' Here the Bears go, with the hope this is nothing like any of the failed changes of the recent past. That excludes, of course, the terrific 2018 season under first-year coach Matt Nagy, the team's last real taste of success. Johnson, 39, was the hot name during the coaching hiring cycle in January, and the fact the Bears landed him with a contract worth $65 million over five seasons remains a bit of a shocker. If he's the next young rock-star head coach to roam NFL sidelines, the Bears indeed are headed in the right direction. Here are five reasons that potentially validate the latest wave of optimism as the Bears prepare to hit the field: 1. Competition is no longer just coach speak. That's how one team executive framed the notion that the Bears previously did more talking about having competition than actually putting players in position to battle it out. Johnson believes in it. He's brand new without preconceived notions about players. Sure, a good number of players are well-positioned because of their contractual status. The rest? They better be ready to perform for jobs. All eyes will be on what, for the time being, is a three-way battle at left tackle among Braxton Jones, rookie Ozzy Trapilo and Kiran Amegadjie, but the idea of real, honest competition will extend to more spots on the depth chart than you might imagine. 2. Johnson is open-minded about what the Bears will run. Caleb Williams struggled as a rookie to do what makes Jared Goff a top-tier quarterback for the Detroit Lions. Conversely, what Williams does at a high level, Goff can't do. That's why Johnson said when he arrived that he would build an offensive scheme and playbook around the players he has. He expanded on that thought a little Tuesday, saying they still are evaluating exactly what they want to be offensively. Wisely, they're waiting until pads go on and they're not operating in helmets and shorts. 'We've got to find out who we are, and I'm going beyond just the quarterback here,' Johnson said. 'I don't know if we're going to be a wide-zone team up front. I don't know if we're going to be a gap team yet. There's a lot of things that have got to play out.' 3. After repeated stop-gap measures to piece together the offensive line, the Bears took major action. No one would put the Bears in the discussion of the NFL's elite offensive lines because of the big question at left tackle. But Poles' trades for guards Joe Thuney — one of the most decorated interior linemen of the last decade — and Jonah Jackson plus a big contract to add free-agent center Drew Dalman have made them as good as any team from guard to guard. Williams should have a firm pocket, and no longer will conversations about the quarterback or offense have to be hedged with concern about protection. The Bears should be a better running team too. Thuney will be an asset to whoever winds up taking the majority of the snaps at left tackle. Dalman should ease the burden on Williams as he works to become much better at the line of scrimmage pre-snap. Think about it. When is the last time the offensive line's performance wasn't a caveat to include in any discussion of what the Bears offense or quarterback could do? 4. The coach and quarterback seem to be in a good place. Make no mistake. The biggest storyline of the 2025 season will be how Williams fares in Year 2. His development is more important than the win total. If he's clearly in ascent by January, you can feel good about the future direction. If it's muddled, then you're setting sights on a make-or-break 2026 season. 'I think we're ready to go,' Johnson said. 'The governor is off. (Williams) and I have been talking all spring, all summer, constant phone calls, constant conversations. And so I think we're in a great place and he wants to get coached hard. And we're going to push him as hard as we can and do what is right for the team.' Williams said he spent his downtime since the end of the offseason program improving his footwork, becoming more accurate on short throws to the left and trying to improve his cadence while also mastering the playbook. 'It's a really important relationship,' Williams said. 'It has been growing. It has been awesome. We're having fun. He gets on me, and it's greatly appreciated that he does. 'Being tough on me and realizing and understanding that nobody's above anybody. All of us are, and that's how we're going to march through this season.' Johnson even shared a lofty goal of having Williams complete 70% of his passes this season. He was 25th among qualifying players in 2024 at 62.5%, and only five quarterbacks — Tua Tagovailoa, Goff, Baker Mayfield, Joe Burrow and Geno Smith — reached the 70% threshold. Why not enter the season with bold ambitions? 5. The coaching staff has a lot of veteran minds from a wide variety of backgrounds. The Bears paid handsomely to hire Johnson, and they followed up by investing in assistants — notably Dennis Allen (defensive coordinator), Richard Smith (linebackers), Eric Bieniemy (running backs), Dan Roushar (offensive line), Al Harris (secondary) and Richard Hightower (special teams) — with a wealth of experience for Johnson to lean on. Provided Johnson is comfortable delegating responsibility — something every first-time head coach has to learn as he goes — it could prove to be a valuable mix. 'We've got a number of guys that have done this at a high level for a long time,' Johnson said, 'and so I am going to be going to them for advice quite a bit when certain things arise.' It was Winston Churchill who said, 'To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often.' In that vein, the Bears have been chasing perfection for a mighty long time. Once again, it's a new beginning at Halas Hall. ____
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Poles: Jaylon Johnson is going to be out ‘a few weeks' with leg injury
LAKE FOREST, Ill. (WGN) — On day 1 of training camp at Halas Hall, Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles announced it'll be a little bit before Jaylon Johnson is back in pads at full-strength. 'It is going to take a few weeks before he can come back. We got a lot of faith that he's going to put in time to rehab and be his full self when he comes back,' Poles said. 'I'm sure we'll have updates as we go through training camp, but it's going to take a little bit of time, but [we're] not overly concerned about long term.' The Bears placed Johnson and three other players (QB Case Keenum, WR Jahdae Walker and RB Ian Wheeler) on the Active/Non-Football Injury (NFI) List Friday, July 19. Keenum was on the NFI list for about 24 hours before he was placed back on the active roster. Poles said Walker and Wheeler were both reactivated Tuesday afternoon. Johnson has made back-to-back Pro Bowls and played in 31 of 34 possible games going back to the beginning of the 2023 NFL regular season. He missed Weeks 4 and 5 in 2023 due to a hamstring injury, and was inactive for Week 17 of the same season against the Green Bay Packers. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Bears' Ryan Poles reveals jarring injury update on Jaylon Johnson
The Chicago Bears have been widely regarded as one of the biggest winners of this offseason. The front office, led by general manager Ryan Poles, has given quarterback Caleb Williams a formidable supporting cast while hiring former Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson as head coach. It's not going to be easy for Chicago, which has, on paper, one of the most demanding schedules in the NFL, but the vibes are high so far in training camp. Poles, however, did give an eye-opening update on an offseason leg injury suffered by one of the Bears most important defenders, Jaylon Johnson. senior writer Larry Mayer revealed Poles' statement on the two-time Pro Bowler's health status after Day 1 of training camp. "It is going to take a few weeks before he can come back," Poles said. "We've got a lot of faith that he's going to put in the time to rehab and be his full self when he comes back. It's going to take a little bit of time, but (I'm) not overly concerned about long-term." The Bears will open up the season with two divisional clashes against the Minnesota Vikings and Detroit Lions, with the opening matchup taking place on Monday Night Football. Those two games will go a long way toward indicating whether the hype built over this offseason is real or if this roster is far from contending for a playoff spot. Getting Johnson to 100% by September 8 is one of top priorities for this franchise as it heads into one of its most anticipated seasons of the past decade. Follow The Sporting News on WhatsApp More NFL:
CBS News
7 days ago
- Sport
- CBS News
Bears' full squad arrives at Halas Hall ahead of training camp
The full squad arrived at Halas Hall for Bears Training Camp Tuesday ahead of the first practice on Wednesday. Jaylon Johnson came to Halas Hall too, but the pro Bowl cornerback will miss a couple of weeks of practice after suffering a leg injury while training on his own. As veterans report to Halas Hall, players are already saying there is a sense of urgency before their first practice on Wednesday. But new head coach Ben Johnson knows his first training camp as a head coach will include twists and turns, and learning curves for all. "There's going to be bumps, there's going to be ups, there's going to be downs. It's easy to have bad day or two, and go ahead and be all panicky. That's not going to be us. It's going to be a little bit more of [a curve], but there's certain benchmarks along the way," Johnson said. "The first couple weeks is going to be a big installation, so the guys are going to be thinking. Mistakes are going to be made." Quarterback Caleb Williams is headed into his second year with clear goals, including to be the franchise's first 4,000-yard passer, and to complete 70% of his passes while learning under the new offensive head coach. "It's been growing. It's been awesome. You know, we're having fun. You know, he gets on me, and it's greatly appreciated that he does — being tough on me, and realizing and understanding that nobody is above anybody — all of us are one," said Williams. "That's how we're going to march this season." Also Tuesday, Bears general manager Ryan Poles said Braxton Jones and rookie tight end Colston Loveland are healthy to start camp, but they will go through a ramp up period.
