Jaylon Johnson desires to stay a Chicago Bear. That tune hasn’t modified.
“I’ve said that since I got here,” Johnson reiterated Wednesday, a day after the Bears gave him permission to hunt a commerce that by no means materialized earlier than Tuesday’s deadline.
Bears basic supervisor Ryan Poles would like to preserve Johnson as a part of the group’s core as he tries to construct a championship contender at Halas Hall. Poles’ big-picture stance hasn’t modified both.
“I don’t want to lose Jaylon Johnson,” he stated.
Yet the means for these needs to develop into actuality is a contract extension that hasn’t materialized by way of a negotiating course of that has been slower and clunkier than both aspect desires.
Johnson sees himself as the most effective cornerbacks within the NFL and needs to be rewarded accordingly along with his second contract. Poles, in the meantime, has confused enterprise self-discipline all through his time as GM, working onerous to not wander far past the monetary boundaries he and his entrance workplace set when valuing gamers.
The outcome? A contractual staring contest with an apparent disconnect between what the Bears are keen to pay Johnson and what the cornerback and his camp imagine he’s value.
Poles defined his want to seek out “a sweet spot” and asserted that an in-person assembly Sunday in Los Angeles with Johnson’s agent, Christopher Ellison, went properly.
“I thought we made progress,” Poles stated. “I texted my group and said, ‘We’ll be able to get this deal done in a matter of days.’”
But when the Bears returned from Los Angeles, Ellison and Johnson expressed a want to discover a commerce. That’s why, in a little bit of a shocking twist, Poles granted Johnson that permission and why Johnson thought he would possibly get up Wednesday as a part of a brand new group.
“That’s the respect I have for Jaylon,” Poles stated. “It’s like, ‘If that’s in your heart that you want to go check that out, go check that out and see what comes back.’”
Poles, naturally, set the bar excessive for commerce talks.
“If I were to lose Jaylon Johnson, I would like to have a high-percentage (chance) of hitting on another Jaylon Johnson,” he stated. “Which to me is a late first- or early second-(spherical) draft decide. That didn’t occur.
“So we are still open to getting a contract done. And I’m going to follow Jaylon’s lead on how he wants to go about doing that.”
With 9 video games remaining within the fourth and remaining season of Johnson’s rookie deal, the following step on this course of will play out with Johnson having loads of motivation for the following 2 1/2 months.
“Just want to continue to stack the season and build my resume the best I can,” Johnson stated. “I have some personal goals I want to achieve. And then from there, we’ll figure that (contract stuff) out when that time comes.”
Johnson was requested if, given the way in which negotiations with the Bears have transpired, he’s now desirous to hit free company when his rookie deal expires in March. He smiled and nodded.
“One hundred percent,” he stated.
What stays unknown is the place the Bears have set their worth on Johnson in contrast with how the cornerback values himself. Johnson emphasised Wednesday that he and his camp haven’t been outlandish with their requests.
“I’m not asking to change the market or break records,” Johnson stated. “But I’m also not just going to take anything. Like, ‘OK, you deem me as this so I’m this.’ No, I’m not just going to take one man’s word and put that viewpoint on myself.”
Johnson stated Tuesday’s expertise — along with his agent capable of communicate with different groups about potential contract phrases if a possible commerce had materialized — gave him conviction that his monetary objectives aren’t unreasonable.
Asked whether or not his camp’s talks with different groups introduced a contract evaluation that was essentially completely different from what the Bears have supplied, Johnson stated, “In some cases, yes, sir.”
Poles countered that whereas the Bears have prolonged potential contract presents, neither aspect has introduced a remaining provide.
“That’s why we met in LA,” Poles stated. “We were (trying) to close the gap and figure out where to go next.”
Johnson, a second-round decide by the Bears in 2020, made the second and third interceptions of his profession in a win over the Las Vegas Raiders two weeks in the past. He hopes so as to add to that complete whereas establishing himself as one of many sport’s finest go defenders.
He has drawn reward from the Bears teaching workers all season for his protection means and improved tackling.
“I’ve been playing high-level football all year,” Johnson stated. “Nothing for me is going to change. My attitude isn’t going to change. Me being who I am isn’t going to change. At the end of the day, me doing what I need to do helps the Bears as well.”
Johnson additionally has zoomed out to know Poles’ perspective from the GM’s chair.
“This whole situation is interesting,” Johnson stated. “It’s straightforward to take every part personally. At the top of the day, Ryan has his household to feed. Ryan has folks he solutions to. I really feel like should, in a way, respect that.
“What I view for myself is what I view for myself. And how he views me is for him and what’s best for this organization. I don’t take any of it personally.”
Still, nothing has progressed to fulfill Johnson or Poles. And at this stage, it’s not straightforward to foretell the last word decision.
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Source: www.bostonherald.com