Jaylon Johnson is having one of the best seasons of any cornerback so far in 2021. A passer rating allowed of less than 42. A completion percentage well under 50%. He’s been nothing short of outstanding. However, the real challenge is finally at hand. Johnson is set to go against All-Pro Davante Adams on Sunday. The Green Bay Packers star leads the entire NFL in receiving with 579 yards. He is coming off an effort in Cincinnati that saw him go for 206 yards in the game.
Teams just haven’t been able to find any solutions for him. Having Aaron Rodgers, the most accurate QB in history probably helps. Yet there is no denying that Adams is ridiculously good at what he does. Johnson knows this. He’ll draw the task of shadowing him most of the afternoon at Soldier Field. The 22-year old understands exactly who he is up against.
“He has good releases, good routes, good hands. Just one of the top receivers in the league. It’s really about finding the technique to be able to play against him. Because everybody is trying to play the same way against him and everybody has the same result.”
The first time they met in 2020?
Johnson held up. Adams was targeted once against him and it was incomplete. This will be the second time they’ve met since he missed the season finale last year with a shoulder injury. While Johnson doesn’t need any extra confidence, this should offer a nice boost to know he can at least hang with the star pass catcher. In fact, people can’t forget this is a matchup the young corner asked for literally before he became a Bear.
Keep this in mind. The Packers have thrown for 1,309 yards so far this season. Adams has accounted for 44.23% of their entire passing game. The next closest receiver this season is Randall Cobb with 157 yards. Rodgers is leaning heavily on Adams. This is why teams are trying so hard to neutralize him. They know if they can, it has a chance to stymie the Packers passing game. The one team that managed to was New Orleans. They walloped the Green Bay 38-3.
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Jaylon Johnson has a chance to turn many heads this week
He probably isn’t going to stop Adams. Nobody can. However, if he’s able to keep the receiver under control most of the afternoon? It will be impossible to ignore the reality by that point. He will have cemented himself as one of the breakout defenders of this season. A genuine Pro Bowl contender. Not bad for a kid many teams passed on until he fell to the Bears at the 50th pick.
Much of this will depend on what happens up front. The Bears pass rush has been excellent this season. They lead the league with 18 sacks. However, they had a hard time getting to Rodgers last season. Just one sack in two games. You aren’t beating this quarterback without getting pressure. Defensive coordinator Sean Desai will need to cook up some creative wrinkles to throw at him. More than anything, the defensive front has to win their matchups. That would make life easier on Jaylon Johnson.
The last thing Adams needs is extra time to find an opening.
This is a big game for both teams. A win results in 1st place in the division and a critical tiebreaker advantage over the other. Most are predicting the Packers keep doing their thing, beating the Bears at Soldier Field. It’s hard to argue that. Green Bay has lost to Chicago just four times total since 2010. Johnson and everybody else on that roster must strike to flip the script.