Chicago Bears fans were overjoyed when Jaylon Johnson signed his contract extension. The All-Pro would remain in navy blue and orange for another four years. He came in from California to sign and announce it to fans via a press conference. People had no idea what was coming. In addition to the usual things like thanking God, friends, and family, Johnson shocked everybody in the room when he admitted to entering therapy last year for sex addiction. It was something he felt needed to be said, reminding everybody it’s not always wise to put professional athletes on a pedestal. They have demons just like the common folk.
Johnson provided further details about how bad things got once he got to the NFL. Part of the problem was he got his first taste of sex before he even became an adult. He wasn’t mature enough to handle the obvious changes that came with the inexperience. As a result, he adopted a mentality of getting as much as he could as often as he could, even after he got a legitimate girlfriend in 2021. The story, in all its raw details, was provided by Dan Pompei of The Athletic.
He also needed to redirect himself. He had been unfaithful to Janessa, his girlfriend since 2021. Again. And he was watching a lot of pornography.
Johnson says he lost his virginity at 16 and then adopted the mindset that more is better. In high school, he was a four-star recruit. In college at Utah, he was all-conference. Things came easily for the big man on campus.
“Playing a manly sport drew girls to me,” he says. “It wasn’t hard to go to a party, get a number and have sex. I got lost in a sense of who I was created to be versus whatever felt good to me.”
Johnson graduated in two and a half years, and the Bears drafted him in the second round in 2020. As a pro, he was afforded an unhealthy combination of time and celebrity.
“I could just have fun, sleep with whomever I wanted,” he says. “Anytime there was nothing going on, it would revert to girls. It got to the point where I wasn’t able to shake it.”
Jaylon Johnson is far from the first athlete with demons.
Lawrence Taylor famously had rampant drug problems throughout his career. Plaxico Burress had issues with guns. Michael Vick had the dog fighting ring that got him thrown in prison. The list is long and uncomfortable. A sex addiction on the low end of the severity scale, but it still has hurt the people Johnson loves. That is likely why he felt it necessary to put the truth out there. People needed to know his story so they wouldn’t make the same mistakes. Sex addiction can be a dangerous game when it’s so clearly out of control.
To his credit, Jaylon Johnson is trying to own up to his mistakes. He’s not perfect. It is an admirable quality to have. Many in his position would’ve stayed quiet, taken the money, and continued to do pretty much whatever they wanted. Older fans have likely heard enough stories about players being unfaithful to their spouses for many years. Johnson was no different in their eyes. He didn’t like that, so he endeavored to change himself. He wanted to be better, both on and off the field. Good on him.
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