Bears general manager Ryan Poles said at the start of training camp that Jaylon Johnson would miss “a few weeks” because of what he called a leg injury he suffered during training in the offseason.
Thursday, coach Ben Johnson made it sound like the cornerback’s rehab would last longer.
“I think there’s a scenario where he’ll be ready for Week 1,” Ben Johnson said before practice. “That’s really the target date. I know he’s working hard and diligently to get there for that. With those types of injuries that he’s got, you just never know. You never know. It’s still early in that process. I know he’s attacking that rehab really well.”
The Bears put Johnson on the NFI list because he was hurt outside of the team facility. If Johnson isn’t ready for the start of the season, the Bears can put him on the Physically Unable to Perform list on cut day. If so, by league rule, he’d have to miss the team’s first four games.
Johnson, perhaps the Bears’ best defensive player, has made the Pro Bowl the past two seasons. The Bears have been happy with the play of veteran cornerback Nahshon Wright in his place thus far in camp.
The Bears say Johnson is rehabbing with the team, though he’s not been spotted on the sideline during practices.
Johnson and fellow cornerback Zah Frazier are the two players yet to practice during camp. Frazier, a fifth-round pick, is “working on a personal issue,” Johnson said.
