Watch Out for Jon’Vea Johnson During Chicago Bears Preseason
Under-the-radar WR Jon’Vea Johnson has strong chemistry with Justin Fields, but has a ways to go to make the roster.
The Chicago Bears have a quietly solid wide receiver room made up of Allen Robinson, Darnell Mooney, Damiere Byrd, and Dazz Newsome as the notable names, but one receiver that broke out in training camp is Jon’Vea Johnson.
The formerly undrafted receiver has emerged as Justin Fields’ favorite target as Fields goes through camp with the second-string offense. Johnson displayed his talent when he made an eye-popping 45-yard touchdown grab in joint practice versus the Miami Dolphins.
The Justin Fields and Jon’Vea Johnson connection is real. The 2 best throws from the QB came to Johnson today. Both on the money and one from about 45ish yards. Impressive stuff. #Bears
— Zack Pearson (@Zack_Pearson) August 11, 2021
Johnson had a mundane collegiate career at Toledo, totaling 125 catches for 2,265 yards and 25 touchdowns. However, at the NFL combine his 40-yard dash caught the eye of scouts; he ran a 4.40.
The speed is identical to what Ryan Pace spent all offseason looking for, as he acquired Damiere Byrd who runs a 4.25, Marquise Goodwin who runs a 4.27, and Dazz Newsome who runs a 4.47.
This combined with speedy sophomore receiver Darnell Mooney gives the Bears a dynamic offense. While Robinson, Mooney, and Byrd are essentially locked to make the roster, the Bears will likely keep five receivers.
The other receivers at the bottom of the depth chart are Riley Ridley and disgraced Javon Wims, with rookie Newsome who’s coming off of a broken collarbone. Even though Ridley and Wims have been on the Bears for a few years now, neither has shown as much as Johnson has in a few weeks.
His chemistry with Fields is another bonus to climbing up the depth chart. This is what the preseason is for: Johnson has essentially three games to prove that he belongs on the Bears 53-man roster over Ridley, Wims, or Goodwin.
With Matt Nagy announcing that Fields is going to get a lot of snaps versus the Miami Dolphins, it’s fair to assume that Johnson will as well, since the Bears likely wouldn’t risk their starting receivers in the preseason.
Nagy said, “The mindset going into it is he’s [Fields] going to get a lot of reps. Does that take him into the fourth quarter? Maybe. Who knows? We’ll see. But the more reps we can get him right now, the better. It’s only going to help him.”
If Jon’Vea Johnson displays his abilities the rest of this month, the Chicago Bears could find their receiver room completely transformed, with the exception of Robinson, in just one year.