The Chicago Bears wrapped the 2022 season with a 3-14 record, which culminated in a 10-game losing streak. But there’s still reasons to be optimistic about the future, including a boatload of salary cap space, the first overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft and the emergence of quarterback Justin Fields.
Here at Bears Wire, we’re going position by position through the 2022 Bears and grading every player. Up next is cornerback, where young players such as Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon made strides throughout the season.
Jaylon Johnson: B
Season stats: 35 tackles (1 for loss), 7 passes defensed, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery
Jaylon Johnson entered the season as the team’s top cornerback and teams treated him as such early on. For the first two weeks, Johnson wasn’t targeted in the passing game and was clearly the defender teams wanted to avoid. That eventually faded and Johnson had some ups and downs, facing a few of the better offenses in the middle of the season. His turnover numbers need to increase as he has just three takeaways in as many seasons, but his stats as a whole improved from 2021. He allowed just one touchdown and lowered his opposing passer rating from 101.9 to 94.6, according to Pro Football Reference.
Johnson missed the final few games with injuries, but ended his year on a high note when he went toe-to-toe with A.J. Brown when the Bears faced the Philadelphia Eagles. Now entering his fourth season, Johnson is eligible for a contract extension and it would be a surprise to not see him sign one. He’s not an elite cornerback yet, but he’s established himself as a very solid one with the potential to keep getting better.
Kyler Gordon: C+
Season stats: 71 tackles (2 for loss), 3 interceptions, 6 passes defenses, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery
Kyler Gordon’s rookie season started off on the wrong foot. As a starter from Week 1, Gordon was picked on relentlessly by opposing quarterbacks. He was allowing chunk plays in the passing game and wasn’t able to catch up to what offenses were doing. If he was being graded for the first half of the season, Gordon likely would have failed.
But the Bears’ top overall selection from the 2022 NFL Draft began turning things around. Gordon’s run defense was solid all year, but his passing defense finally showed signs of improvement. He notched three interceptions over his final eight games and showed his ability to read quarterbacks and receivers to make plays on the ball. Gordon showed versatility by playing both inside and outside cornerback, but a full offseason at one position may do wonders for his development.
Kindle Vildor: C
Season stats: 34 tackles (2 for loss), 1 interception, 5 passes defensed
From a football standpoint, Kindle Vildor was left for dead when the 2021 season concluded. His sophomore season was a dumpster fire and it felt like his days as a Bear could be over. But to Vildor’s credit, he didn’t back down and rebounded quite nicely all things considered. Vildor’s numbers improved across the board in 2022, allowing three less touchdowns than the previous season and lowing his completion percentage by five points.
Vildor fit head coach Matt Eberflus’ system more than the previous regime and they were able to get more out of him as an outside starting cornerback. His game still has a long ways to go and he will likely face increased competition when camp begins, but expectations were in the dirt for Vildor when the season began. This was a positive year for him.
Jaylon Jones: C-
Season stats: 47 tackles, 2 passes defensed, 1 forced fumble
Jaylon Jones was one of the unlikely undrafted free agents to make the active roster in late summer and wound up playing a significant role on defense for the Bears, in part because of injuries. He was active for 16 games, eight of which he was on the field for more than 50% of the defensive snaps. Jones struggled mightily early in the year, particularly against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 4 when Kirk Cousins constantly picked on him in the passing game.
But like other players, Jones played better the more experience he got. He was solid against the Green Bay Packers and Buffalo Bills late in the year and could amount to a reliable reserve defensive back. Jones had zero expectations and wound up becoming a key player down the stretch.
Josh Blackwell: B
Season stats: 23 tackles, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery
Josh Blackwell was another undrafted free agent who wound up playing significant snaps for the Bears down the stretch. He was claimed off waivers and quickly became a solid special teams player, forcing a fumble on a punt return against the New York Giants. Blackwell didn’t see his first defensive snap until Week 13 when players such as Gordon and Vildor were out due to injury.
Blackwell boasted speed in the secondary whenever he was on the field and is a player who kept up with receivers downfield to help force incompletions. His defensive snaps were limited so it’s difficult to gauge how well he can play as a slot corner but he has a special teams spot locked up at the very least.
Harrison Hand: INC
Season stats: 12 tackles, 1 pass defensed, 1 forced fumble
Harrison Hand spent most of the season on the Bears’ practice squad, but was called up late in the year due to injuries. He only saw significant action in the final two games, but he did force a fumble in the season finale against the Vikings in his lone start. Still, Hand finishes the year without a grade due to his limited action.
