LAKE FOREST, IL: Jaylon Johnson grew to become one of many highest-paid NFL defensive gamers solely after a personal psychological and emotional private battle.
The Chicago Bears’ fifth-yr cornerback signed a 4-yr contract extension final week for a reported $76 million, and on Monday revealed he regarded it as a private triumph not merely as a result of it confirmed his soccer skills.
“I went to therapy last season for sexual addiction,” Johnson stated. “That was the hardest thing for me to open up to my therapist about.
“That is something nobody knew about.”
Johnson had 4 of his 5 profession interceptions final season and was second-workforce All-Pro throughout a contract yr. Pro Football Focus graded him the highest cornerback within the league final season.
Johnson stated he felt compelled to announce his private struggles.
“It’s like, man, we’re human, too,” Johnson stated. “We go through things. Everybody goes through things. But I feel like people (think), like you’ve got to put a mask on, you’ve got to cover it up.
“It’s like, no, it’s OK to go through things. It’s OK to seek help. It’s OK to be vulnerable.”
Johnson wished to share this to carry consciousness to the problem.
“I want to say, for one, it’s because I know I’m not the only one going through it,” Johnson stated. “Two, it’s OK to go through stuff; it’s OK not to be perfect.”
Football virtually grew to become an outlet for Johnson throughout his remedy final yr.
“Everybody was talking about playing football — that’s easy,” Johnson stated. “I mean, just going out and seeing my therapist on an off day, it’s like, damn, that’s where I’m most uncomfortable.”
He fearful much less about getting his new contract than enhancing his psychological well being.
“I was worried about trying to get myself right because for me it’s bigger than contracts,” Johnson stated. “I mean, me being who I need to be as a man, who I need to be as a father, as a partner, as a future husband, that’s more important.”
Johnson in the end felt victorious on the sphere by changing into a lock-down cornerback in a breakthrough season.
“Thinking back on it, I don’t think there was ever anybody open in the games,” he stated. “So stuff like that is something I take pride in, just being sticky in coverage.
“And also just making plays in the backfield, as well, I feel like even on screens, being aggressive, tackling receivers in the backfield, I think that was something big that I didn’t put on film too much (in the past),” he stated. “But I felt like just having that aggressive balance of sticky coverage and being physical in the run game as well.”
The contract permits Johnson to proceed taking part in in a secondary now revamped after the signing of veteran security Kevin Byard to a two-yr contract as a substitute for veteran Eddie Jackson.
The Bears tied for the league lead in interceptions final season.
“I know we’ve got dogs at all levels,” Johnson stated of the Bears protection. “So I think just being in on (Byard) and with the departure of Eddie, I think kind of put the glue back together in the secondary that we needed.”
As free company opens Monday with the negotiating interval, the large query dealing with the workforce is whether or not quarterback Justin Fields will likely be traded and the way it might have an effect on the locker room if he’s.
“I feel like at the end of the day, we know the business that we’re in,” Johnson stated. “So I feel like it wouldn’t be mature of us as a locker room not to rally together in spite of having Justin leave.
“I know what it would do to keep him here. I know how we would feel with him here, but I feel like at the end of the day, we’ll all have our opinions, our emotions, but as far as the locker room staying together, I think we have the right guys in the locker room to keep everything together, to keep us together.”
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(This story has not been edited by News18 workers and is revealed from a syndicated information company feed – Associated Press)
