Why Bears' Jaylon Johnson fell out of top-10 NFL cornerbacks in ESPN poll

The Chicago Bears came into the 2025 NFL season with a few cornerbacks they could be confident in, especially Jaylon Johnson, who was ranked as a top-10 CB in the NFL by those in the league in an ESPN poll.

But, a year later, Johnson fell out of the top 10. He's no longer one of the 10 best cornerbacks in the NFL. He's still good, but compared to others around the league, he's not viewed as highly as he once was. But why is that the case?

One NFL personnel evaluator explained why Johnson fell out of their top-10 CB ranking to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, and the reasoning is a simple one: playing time.

Why Jaylon Johnson isn't a top 10 CB anymore

"Time on task has been an issue," an NFL personnel evaluator said. "He missed a lot of camp and game action. But he's young (27), so he should be able to get back to his top form. He's got juice when he's full tilt."

The Bears' cornerback is a two-time Pro Bowler and was very productive in recent seasons. He had four interceptions (one pick-six) in 2023, and then two interceptions the following season.

While he had one interception this past year, there was one glaring problem: he played in just seven games. Johnson played 14 games in 2023 and 17 in 2024. But, during the 2025 season, he played in just seven games as he was hurt for most of the year.

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His coverage wasn't too different, as he had a 92.2 passer rating allowed this past season compared to a 92.6 passer rating allowed the year prior.

But the sheer difference in games played knocked him down a bit in the rankings, and combined with some good cornerbacks emerging, he lost his top-10 ranking.

Johnson can easily return to top-10 form. He's only 27 years old and not far removed from being a good cornerback. All he needs to do is play more often and stay at a fairly high level, and the 2027 NFL CB rankings could feature Johnson back in the top 10.

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