WEBVTT - Breaking down Ryan Poles' latest roster moves | Bears, etc. Podcast 0:00:00.160 --> 0:00:03.240 Right justin middle of the field forty five fifteen bring 0:00:03.360 --> 0:00:05.040 Russ in front of a leading. 0:00:04.880 --> 0:00:05.720 Lions in his way. 0:00:06.080 --> 0:00:12.360 I am Jeff Jonihac, Whitz is not DONI houscur what was. 0:00:12.480 --> 0:00:13.399 Like playing for Coche? 0:00:13.400 --> 0:00:13.840 Good done. 0:00:14.520 --> 0:00:16.000 I don't want to answer any questions like that. 0:00:16.160 --> 0:00:17.439 Sixty one yards? 0:00:17.800 --> 0:00:20.079 What's Sunday stroll for? Justin field? 0:00:25.320 --> 0:00:28.400 Yes, Bears et Cetera, brought to you by Miller Lte 0:00:28.400 --> 0:00:31.400 with the voices of the Bears, Jeff Joniac and Tom Thayer. 0:00:32.680 --> 0:00:33.199 We look and. 0:00:33.200 --> 0:00:36.000 Dealing in a crazy week over the NFL landscape, which 0:00:36.000 --> 0:00:38.879 includes right here in the great Midwest, where your Chicago 0:00:38.920 --> 0:00:41.159 Bears filled some key spots on both sides of the 0:00:41.159 --> 0:00:43.760 ball and locked up four of the ear starting cornerback 0:00:43.880 --> 0:00:46.600 Jalen Johnson on a long term deal as we get 0:00:46.640 --> 0:00:49.120 you said for the twenty twenty four season. Welcome into 0:00:49.159 --> 0:00:52.120 the Bears et Cetera Podcast. So much to discuss in 0:00:52.200 --> 0:00:55.440 episode fifty nine, and we begin with Super Bowl winning Bears. 0:00:55.200 --> 0:00:55.880 Guard Tom Fair. 0:00:55.920 --> 0:00:58.760 I'm Jeff Jonihac coming up my one on one interview 0:00:58.800 --> 0:01:02.160 with newly minted Jalen Johnson, and then Tom and I 0:01:02.160 --> 0:01:04.800 break down the deals that general manager Ryan Poles secured 0:01:04.800 --> 0:01:08.560 for the twenty twenty four Chicago Bears. They now are official, 0:01:08.600 --> 0:01:12.520 pending the passage of physicals, of course, but we're wide open, Tom, 0:01:12.560 --> 0:01:15.759 and I've always referred to Ryan Poles in the way 0:01:15.760 --> 0:01:17.880 that I've gotten to know him each week of the 0:01:17.959 --> 0:01:22.360 last two seasons, the quiet storm. He exudes so much confidence, calmness, 0:01:22.360 --> 0:01:26.080 but inside that motor runs hot. And he continues with 0:01:26.120 --> 0:01:29.240 a very measured approach to free agency. Tom has promised 0:01:29.240 --> 0:01:29.959 when he was hired. 0:01:30.160 --> 0:01:32.960 I've been impressed with Ryan since he's been here, and 0:01:33.040 --> 0:01:35.920 I hope with the signing of these guys, I'm continue 0:01:35.920 --> 0:01:36.120 to be. 0:01:36.240 --> 0:01:38.640 So this episode of Bears, It's Better Up, brought to 0:01:38.640 --> 0:01:42.319 you by Miller Lyte. So he really strikes, in my opinion, 0:01:42.360 --> 0:01:44.759 Tom when he feels the need to adjust the roster 0:01:44.920 --> 0:01:46.679 and get ahead of the pack, so to speak. So 0:01:46.760 --> 0:01:49.080 you think about last year, who was the first free 0:01:49.120 --> 0:01:51.000 agent to sign in the National Football League. 0:01:51.040 --> 0:01:52.919 It was TJ. Edwards at linebacker. 0:01:53.000 --> 0:01:56.640 So he did a deal that this year linebackers are 0:01:56.640 --> 0:02:01.480 getting a similar deal, no question about it. Free agent period. 0:02:01.840 --> 0:02:04.560 The first running back and in what has been a 0:02:04.640 --> 0:02:07.680 robust running back mark, the first running back to get 0:02:07.720 --> 0:02:12.360 off the board was DeAndre Swift. So he focuses and 0:02:12.400 --> 0:02:16.000 he strikes, and it's not about anything other than fit 0:02:16.240 --> 0:02:19.600 a deal similar to last year's deals of James Connor 0:02:19.880 --> 0:02:23.360 and also to Miles Sanders in twenty twenty two when 0:02:23.400 --> 0:02:24.400 he left Philadelphia. 0:02:24.520 --> 0:02:27.440 Yeah, and he fits the system that Shane Waldron's gonna run. 0:02:27.800 --> 0:02:30.480 And I think that's the key ingredient here. When you 0:02:30.560 --> 0:02:32.720 have a chance and you make an early hire of 0:02:32.760 --> 0:02:35.960 Shane Waldron, you have a chance to have conversation of 0:02:36.080 --> 0:02:39.880 what he specifically is looking for out of certain positions. 0:02:40.120 --> 0:02:41.720 And when you go out there and you look at 0:02:41.720 --> 0:02:45.360 five nine two and fifteen pound dere Swift in some 0:02:45.520 --> 0:02:47.799 of the things he's done in the NFL so far, 0:02:48.360 --> 0:02:52.359 I think he's a, you know, a really perfect fit 0:02:52.720 --> 0:02:56.600 to compliment the other pieces that they have in place already. 0:02:56.400 --> 0:02:59.880 Explosive thirst thing. I think of his speed, terrific pass receiver. 0:03:00.200 --> 0:03:02.200 In his career, He's had a lot of targets in 0:03:02.200 --> 0:03:05.000 the passing game, and that is something that personally I 0:03:05.160 --> 0:03:08.080 was hoping for a player that can both run the 0:03:08.080 --> 0:03:10.840 ball in this outside zone but also be a threat 0:03:10.840 --> 0:03:14.160 in the passing game. And Khalil Herbert is also that, 0:03:14.560 --> 0:03:17.239 and Roshawn Johnson is also that. I mean, you really 0:03:17.280 --> 0:03:20.320 do right now have a complete backfield. Now you're throw 0:03:20.320 --> 0:03:23.640 in Travis Homer, who's in the backfield, but he's a 0:03:23.680 --> 0:03:26.600 special team's ace. He's still under contract, and of course, 0:03:27.120 --> 0:03:29.639 blasting game is your fullback still under contract. 0:03:30.040 --> 0:03:33.160 You know the thing about the passing game that involves 0:03:33.160 --> 0:03:36.400 a running back, you'd like to see some downfield spark plays. 0:03:36.680 --> 0:03:39.080 And you look at DeAndre Swift. He's got four catches 0:03:39.120 --> 0:03:43.000 of twenty yards or more. He's got eight receiving touchdowns. 0:03:43.440 --> 0:03:47.360 And the thing about the Bears since nineteen seventy, they've 0:03:47.360 --> 0:03:50.840 only had four running backs that have eight receiving touchdowns, 0:03:51.040 --> 0:03:54.720 and that's Walter Neil Anderson, Matt Fote, and Terie Cohen. 0:03:55.320 --> 0:03:58.600 So when you talk about what DeAndre Swift can contribute 0:03:58.600 --> 0:04:01.720 to the passing offense not only on third down, but 0:04:01.760 --> 0:04:05.760 first and second down, Jeff will possibly see the splash 0:04:05.800 --> 0:04:06.720 plays that we want to. 0:04:06.680 --> 0:04:08.120 See out of the running back position. 0:04:08.160 --> 0:04:10.640 All right, now, tight end, this is a position that 0:04:10.680 --> 0:04:14.840 the Bears definitely have tried in terms of backups, number 0:04:14.840 --> 0:04:18.880 twos and number threes behind Cole comet Gerald Everett comes aboard. 0:04:18.920 --> 0:04:21.599 He's going to have turned thirty in June. But the 0:04:21.680 --> 0:04:24.680 experience with the coordinator, Shane Waldern. He's been with him 0:04:24.720 --> 0:04:28.080 for five years and that included a stop in LA 0:04:28.200 --> 0:04:30.320 with the Rams where he was there for four years, 0:04:30.520 --> 0:04:32.760 and then with Seattle before he went over to the 0:04:32.880 --> 0:04:36.280 LA Chargers. But a two year, twelve million dollar deal. 0:04:36.800 --> 0:04:39.960 There's a lot to like about this particular athlete because 0:04:40.000 --> 0:04:42.960 of his athleticism and speed. Even at his age now, 0:04:43.240 --> 0:04:46.400 he's had some really good successful runs. But knowing that 0:04:46.720 --> 0:04:49.719 that offense and what you know all these years under 0:04:49.720 --> 0:04:52.520 cole Comet, I believe the math is twenty nine catches 0:04:52.800 --> 0:04:56.119 by the tight ends behind him total in those three years. 0:04:56.120 --> 0:04:58.440 So this is something you've been asking for as well. 0:04:59.040 --> 0:05:01.880 A player similar in style the Cole Comet. 0:05:02.160 --> 0:05:04.400 Yeah, when you look at two tight end formations, it's 0:05:04.400 --> 0:05:06.479 not going to be an obvious and a guessing game. 0:05:06.800 --> 0:05:09.480 You're going to see two tight ends that are quality 0:05:09.560 --> 0:05:12.200 pass catchers. And I think he can balance the offense. 0:05:12.560 --> 0:05:15.960 But to me, I like tight ends with the basketball background, 0:05:16.360 --> 0:05:18.720 and when you look at Everett in his high school years, 0:05:18.800 --> 0:05:21.400 he didn't play football till his senior year, but the 0:05:21.440 --> 0:05:23.880 thing that oppressed me most is he made the All 0:05:23.960 --> 0:05:26.839 conference team as a football player when he got into college, 0:05:27.200 --> 0:05:30.960 so that learning curve was quick. And so you develop 0:05:31.040 --> 0:05:34.400 that footwork, you develop that body control, you develop the 0:05:34.520 --> 0:05:37.920 understanding of using your body as a shield, and then 0:05:37.960 --> 0:05:39.640 all of a sudden you take that and bring it 0:05:39.680 --> 0:05:42.840 onto the football field and to have the success that 0:05:42.920 --> 0:05:46.200 he's had, I'm excited about that, and I think that 0:05:46.560 --> 0:05:48.560 it was really it was a position that needed to 0:05:48.560 --> 0:05:52.080 be compliment in a template similar to Cole And in. 0:05:52.000 --> 0:05:54.800 Addition to Waldern knowing him, Chris Beatty, the Bear's new 0:05:54.800 --> 0:05:58.120 wide receivers coach, certainly was in LA with the Chargers 0:05:58.120 --> 0:06:00.480 over the last couple of years, overlapping with him, so 0:06:00.839 --> 0:06:04.080 there is a knowledge there, but a dynamic threat in 0:06:04.120 --> 0:06:06.880 the passing game and certainly run after the catch as well. 0:06:07.400 --> 0:06:11.840 Also the addition we touched on Ryan Bates obviously last week. 0:06:12.120 --> 0:06:14.760 That was a move the Bears made on the interior. 0:06:15.160 --> 0:06:17.840 And then Matt Pryor on a one year deal coming 0:06:17.920 --> 0:06:21.039 out of the forty nine Ers organization entered the league 0:06:21.080 --> 0:06:24.160 in eighteen out of Philadelphia with the Eagles out of TCU. 0:06:24.240 --> 0:06:27.040 Really the only school that really was interested in him. 0:06:27.040 --> 0:06:29.680 He was a late qualifier coming out of college, but 0:06:29.920 --> 0:06:32.640 a huge guy. Tom six to six and three quarters 0:06:32.960 --> 0:06:35.280 three point thirty two. He's played a lot of guard, 0:06:35.560 --> 0:06:38.839 so you automaticlink he's just a tackle, but he's played 0:06:38.839 --> 0:06:40.719 a lot of guard. He had chances to start with 0:06:40.760 --> 0:06:44.040 the Colts. Matt Eberflusse was there during that twenty one season, 0:06:44.240 --> 0:06:46.800 so he has familiarity with him as well. Didn't start 0:06:46.800 --> 0:06:49.479 playing football until his freshman year in high school, so 0:06:50.080 --> 0:06:52.400 a lot of experience under his belt already as a 0:06:52.440 --> 0:06:54.720 seventh year player out of Long Beach, California. 0:06:55.520 --> 0:06:58.800 Jeff, So, if you have an opportunity, go back and 0:06:58.839 --> 0:07:02.520 look at the San Francisco Dallas game, because both offensive. 0:07:02.000 --> 0:07:03.640 Guards got hurt for San Francisco. 0:07:04.160 --> 0:07:07.080 Prior went into that game as an offensive guard left 0:07:07.080 --> 0:07:09.159 guard and was mauling people. 0:07:09.760 --> 0:07:12.240 And so when you say, yeah, you know, he's got 0:07:12.240 --> 0:07:14.680 that inviting size of an offensive tackle. 0:07:15.080 --> 0:07:19.960 However, if you want to increase the overall size of 0:07:20.000 --> 0:07:23.360 your offensive guard position, the power on the inside, the 0:07:23.560 --> 0:07:27.000 length of whatever side you put him at, you're talking 0:07:27.080 --> 0:07:30.480 about putting a massive human being in there that went 0:07:31.200 --> 0:07:34.200 and played against a Dallas defensive line that's pretty darn 0:07:34.280 --> 0:07:36.320 good and absolutely mauled them. 0:07:36.400 --> 0:07:38.320 We still don't know what the quarterback carousel is going 0:07:38.360 --> 0:07:40.120 to produce for the Bears with that number one pick, 0:07:40.280 --> 0:07:43.280 Justin Field still QB one here until further notice, and 0:07:43.400 --> 0:07:46.440 the addition, well inclusion of Tyson Baigen in there of course, 0:07:46.520 --> 0:07:49.320 but now the introduction of someone else familiar with Shane 0:07:49.320 --> 0:07:51.880 Waldron with a one year deal for a veteran, Brent 0:07:52.040 --> 0:07:55.200 RiPP And. He's twenty seven, a five year vet, undrafted 0:07:55.320 --> 0:07:57.960 out of Boise State in nineteen by Denver Or. He 0:07:58.000 --> 0:08:00.720 played for four years. He was on the Jets practice 0:08:00.760 --> 0:08:04.240 squad last year. He's been with Seattle the Rams as well, 0:08:04.360 --> 0:08:06.480 six two to two oh two, just four starts in 0:08:06.520 --> 0:08:09.320 his career. He is the nephew of the Super Bowl 0:08:09.760 --> 0:08:15.280 MVP quarterback Mark Rippin during the Washington Redskins slash now 0:08:15.440 --> 0:08:20.240 Commanders era Super Bowl twenty six. So another familiar face 0:08:20.640 --> 0:08:23.640 for Shane Waldron to install whatever offense he's going to 0:08:23.640 --> 0:08:24.760 install here for the Bears. 0:08:25.240 --> 0:08:27.840 Yeah, you know, Rippin's got bloodlines and he's been playing 0:08:27.840 --> 0:08:30.880 the quarterback position his whole career. He's had a lot 0:08:30.880 --> 0:08:34.440 of opportunities to learn and develop in different systems, different 0:08:34.440 --> 0:08:38.439 offensive coordinators, and I think when you are as committed 0:08:38.480 --> 0:08:40.120 to the game, you know he's at ten, like you said, 0:08:40.160 --> 0:08:43.440 ten appearances and four starts, but he still has a 0:08:43.480 --> 0:08:47.680 positive frame of mind about figuring out what his niche is. 0:08:48.120 --> 0:08:50.840 Is it that third quarterback Tyson Beagen is not going 0:08:50.880 --> 0:08:53.640 to be a pushover man, because I think Tyson Beagen 0:08:54.120 --> 0:08:56.280 is on his way to having a career in the 0:08:56.360 --> 0:08:59.640 NFL and we'll see how things work out. But when 0:08:59.679 --> 0:09:02.360 you talk about OTAs and you talk about training camp, 0:09:02.360 --> 0:09:05.440 and you talk about so many things that the quarterbacks 0:09:05.480 --> 0:09:08.040 need to do during the course of practice, you have 0:09:08.120 --> 0:09:12.719 to have multiple quarterbacks here to increase the competition. 0:09:12.920 --> 0:09:15.040 Played a lot of college football. So in addition to 0:09:15.040 --> 0:09:17.680 those bloodlines, forty nine games at Boise State where he 0:09:17.720 --> 0:09:20.760 was thirty seven and twelve ninety touchdowns, twenty nine picks, 0:09:21.000 --> 0:09:23.679 the Mountain West all time leader in passing yards, among 0:09:23.760 --> 0:09:29.160 other statistics, tastes like Miller Time celebrate responsibly Miller Brewing Company, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. 0:09:29.440 --> 0:09:33.120 Ninety six calories and three point two carbs per twelve ounces. 0:09:33.480 --> 0:09:35.280 So that's on the offensive side of the ball. 0:09:35.400 --> 0:09:35.800 So far. 0:09:35.920 --> 0:09:37.880 Let's go over to the defensive side of the ball, 0:09:38.000 --> 0:09:41.040 and something struck me real quick. In addition to Everett 0:09:41.480 --> 0:09:44.560 the tight end, he came out of South Alabama, You've 0:09:44.600 --> 0:09:48.400 got two players out of smaller schools. Kevin Byerd was 0:09:48.440 --> 0:09:51.599 not even invited to the scouting combine coming out of 0:09:51.640 --> 0:09:54.280 Middle Tennessee State, Yet Tennessee thought enough of him to 0:09:54.280 --> 0:09:57.559 pick him in the third round back in twenty sixteen. 0:09:57.640 --> 0:10:00.760 And he had been nothing but special in terms of 0:10:00.760 --> 0:10:04.000 what he did for the Tennessee Titans. A leader, a ballhawk, 0:10:04.040 --> 0:10:06.880 and a guy who did a ton of great things 0:10:07.000 --> 0:10:10.560 for this Tennessee team. Was traded at the deadline last 0:10:10.600 --> 0:10:13.400 year to Philadelphia. They used him more of a strong safety. 0:10:13.440 --> 0:10:16.520 He is a free safety by nature, but it really 0:10:16.600 --> 0:10:19.680 the fit wasn't great. Eagles deployed him in a different way. 0:10:19.840 --> 0:10:21.600 I think this will be a perfect fit for him, 0:10:21.600 --> 0:10:23.679 filling in that Eddie Jackson role in the back end. 0:10:23.800 --> 0:10:26.840 He's been an outstanding tackler. Pro Football Focus said he 0:10:26.920 --> 0:10:29.720 missed only four point seven percent of his tackles and 0:10:29.800 --> 0:10:32.320 over the course of his career has been steady in 0:10:32.360 --> 0:10:35.800 that regard. And so you gotta have a guy who's 0:10:35.800 --> 0:10:38.760 going to line people up. Want a ballhawk back there. 0:10:38.800 --> 0:10:41.200 Can he get off the hash and make plays with 0:10:41.280 --> 0:10:44.160 his feet, yes, but he also has to make tackles, 0:10:44.200 --> 0:10:45.720 and he can make tackle you know. 0:10:45.760 --> 0:10:49.160 I think he's got twenty eight career interceptions. Maybe, but 0:10:49.320 --> 0:10:52.160 he's a player. He's an on the field guy. When 0:10:52.200 --> 0:10:54.160 you go back and you look at the success he 0:10:54.200 --> 0:10:56.560 had in college, and why was he recognized as an 0:10:56.640 --> 0:10:59.720 NFL player Because he was a player. He was on 0:10:59.760 --> 0:11:03.000 the He's got a lot of examples of playing time 0:11:03.320 --> 0:11:04.079 in the same thing. 0:11:04.160 --> 0:11:06.800 In the pro game. He has been on the field 0:11:06.840 --> 0:11:07.440 type of guy. 0:11:07.520 --> 0:11:10.720 And I really like that type of mentality, that type 0:11:10.760 --> 0:11:16.839 of character, character and attitude, because you know, you get 0:11:16.880 --> 0:11:19.640 these guys that sometimes they want to be on the 0:11:19.679 --> 0:11:22.160 sideline holding the helmet. Then you get these guys that 0:11:22.200 --> 0:11:25.240 are committed to being on the field all times. And 0:11:25.320 --> 0:11:27.360 so when you look at a player like this at 0:11:27.360 --> 0:11:31.200 the safety position is such an important role because it 0:11:31.360 --> 0:11:36.120 organizes the entire defensive backfield and get him in place early, 0:11:36.559 --> 0:11:40.200 so he develops those communication skills with a couple of 0:11:40.240 --> 0:11:43.280 young defensive backs and an experienced guy like Jalen. 0:11:43.720 --> 0:11:46.160 To Tom's point, he hasn't missed the game in eight years. 0:11:47.280 --> 0:11:49.880 What's that kind of plays, that kind of player, and 0:11:49.960 --> 0:11:53.120 you know Ryan again, much like the DeAndre Swift, this 0:11:53.200 --> 0:11:57.960 is super targeted because the safety class of veterans bloated 0:11:58.040 --> 0:12:01.600 here in free agency upward of twenty twenty five players 0:12:01.600 --> 0:12:04.719 that you could say, yeah, you know, this group is 0:12:05.640 --> 0:12:09.640 significant in terms of volume, but thirty starts the last 0:12:09.800 --> 0:12:13.040 two years for another safety that's coming aboard by way 0:12:13.160 --> 0:12:16.320 of another smaller school. Jonathan Owens out of Missouri Western, 0:12:16.360 --> 0:12:18.640 was an undrafted player by the Arizona Cardinals back in 0:12:18.679 --> 0:12:22.040 twenty eighteen. He has really come on strong these last 0:12:22.040 --> 0:12:24.480 two years, not only for the Houston Texans, but also 0:12:24.600 --> 0:12:27.320 the Green Bay Packers, where he played seventy percent of 0:12:27.320 --> 0:12:30.960 his snaps last year on defense for that unit, setting 0:12:30.960 --> 0:12:33.800 career high in special team snaps by a big margin. 0:12:34.000 --> 0:12:36.640 He had never even hit a hunter special team stap. 0:12:36.760 --> 0:12:39.120 He played two hundred and thirty three special team snaps 0:12:39.520 --> 0:12:41.600 last year. So this is a twenty eight year old 0:12:41.640 --> 0:12:44.720 player five ten and three quarters two ten Tommy, and 0:12:44.800 --> 0:12:47.160 now the Bears have two veterans in that safety room 0:12:47.160 --> 0:12:48.439 to help out your Kwan Brisker. 0:12:48.640 --> 0:12:51.600 Yeah, you know, Coach high Tower is always looking for 0:12:51.640 --> 0:12:53.800 that guy. Who's gonna beat one of the captains of 0:12:53.840 --> 0:12:56.320 the special teams, who's going to be a core guy 0:12:56.400 --> 0:12:59.840 that takes part in every team in the fourth phase. 0:13:00.160 --> 0:13:02.400 In Owens is that type of guy. But he's got 0:13:02.440 --> 0:13:06.400 experience at the center position. He saw good, you know, 0:13:07.360 --> 0:13:10.280 time in the practice field up at Green Bay in Houston. 0:13:10.360 --> 0:13:13.640 So I'm excited to have him aboard. You know, at 0:13:13.640 --> 0:13:15.920 twenty eight years old, he's still a young guy and 0:13:15.960 --> 0:13:19.520 has a lot of career left. But you know, when 0:13:19.520 --> 0:13:21.800 you look at your Kwan Brisker and you look at 0:13:21.800 --> 0:13:24.120 Bayer and you look at the other defensive backs they 0:13:24.160 --> 0:13:26.480 have here, that core group of guys that we saw 0:13:26.559 --> 0:13:28.880 last year developing training camp, I think they're going to 0:13:28.960 --> 0:13:30.880 play it equally as important role. 0:13:30.960 --> 0:13:32.760 In the success of the defense this year. 0:13:32.880 --> 0:13:34.880 And Tom, you're certainly familiar with who the man is 0:13:34.920 --> 0:13:37.520 married to, don't you. Jonathan Owens third. 0:13:37.360 --> 0:13:41.160 Most of third most popular women in the NFL for 0:13:41.280 --> 0:13:45.480 try Vaccassie number one, Taylor Swift number two, Simone Biles 0:13:45.559 --> 0:13:46.280 number three. 0:13:46.400 --> 0:13:48.679 I love that Simone Biles will be trying to win 0:13:48.760 --> 0:13:51.600 more gold in Paris this summer for the US and 0:13:51.679 --> 0:13:55.120 she On X has been tweeting her her love of 0:13:55.120 --> 0:13:58.600 the city at Chicago. She's very excited about joining her husband. 0:13:58.640 --> 0:14:02.080 They just got married last April, and she no doubt 0:14:02.160 --> 0:14:05.320 will be a popular figure at Soldier Field over the 0:14:05.320 --> 0:14:08.199 course of the fall and winter as the season progresses. 0:14:08.520 --> 0:14:11.559 All right, let's take another look at that secondary of 0:14:11.600 --> 0:14:13.760 the time referred to We're brought to you by PNC 0:14:14.080 --> 0:14:17.959 Official Bank of the Bears because Jalen Johnson, a cornerstone 0:14:18.000 --> 0:14:21.240 piece for Ryan Poles and that defense for Matt Eberflus 0:14:21.560 --> 0:14:24.240 locking in on a four year, seventy six million dollar deal. 0:14:24.480 --> 0:14:26.040 I had a chance to sit down with him at 0:14:26.120 --> 0:14:29.600 his news conference afterwards at Hallis Hall on Monday. Here's 0:14:29.600 --> 0:14:33.200 that conversation. First of all, congratulations, appreciate it, and you 0:14:33.240 --> 0:14:35.960 know we'll get to the nitty gritty in a minute. 0:14:35.960 --> 0:14:36.960 But how does it feel? 0:14:36.960 --> 0:14:37.160 Man? 0:14:37.520 --> 0:14:38.480 Feel good? Definitely. 0:14:38.520 --> 0:14:41.600 It's our relief just have an opportunity to just I 0:14:41.600 --> 0:14:44.120 feel like, not only set my family up, but set 0:14:44.120 --> 0:14:46.480 my kids up and also just had my career. If 0:14:46.480 --> 0:14:48.720 I thought just having the contract that I have, I 0:14:48.760 --> 0:14:51.560 feel like it's very front loaded. I can make my 0:14:51.640 --> 0:14:53.400 money and then get back to the table as quick 0:14:53.400 --> 0:14:53.880 as possible. 0:14:53.880 --> 0:14:55.080 And that's the that's the goal. 0:14:55.120 --> 0:14:57.920 So I mean, I'm definitely happy and pleased with the structure, 0:14:58.040 --> 0:15:00.160 pleased with the opportunity to be back in the city. 0:15:00.320 --> 0:15:02.960 That, seriously is how Ryan Poles has kind of structured 0:15:03.000 --> 0:15:04.760 all the internal deals. 0:15:05.800 --> 0:15:08.600 You get another crack at it later. But it's funny. 0:15:08.640 --> 0:15:11.000 You know, players come into the league, they get the 0:15:11.080 --> 0:15:13.520 first contract and you know that second one is going 0:15:13.560 --> 0:15:15.920 to be juicy, and here's you already thinking about the 0:15:15.920 --> 0:15:18.840 third one. That crazy, But that's the way the league 0:15:18.920 --> 0:15:19.760 is now, isn't it. 0:15:19.880 --> 0:15:21.440 Yeah? I think for me as well. 0:15:21.440 --> 0:15:22.880 I was saying, it's like the rookie contract that was 0:15:22.920 --> 0:15:24.440 what you did based on what you did in college, 0:15:24.440 --> 0:15:26.880 and it's like second contract based on what you did 0:15:26.920 --> 0:15:29.680 on your rookie contract, And now the third contract is 0:15:29.920 --> 0:15:31.600 gonna be what I do in these next four years. 0:15:31.640 --> 0:15:34.080 So I'll be looking forward to that well a long. 0:15:33.920 --> 0:15:36.560 Time between then, yeah and now. 0:15:36.720 --> 0:15:39.520 And you know you've been talking really almost two years 0:15:39.600 --> 0:15:43.920 about the potential to get this deal. Did you ever 0:15:44.000 --> 0:15:46.440 grow weary because you were asked about it a lot 0:15:46.560 --> 0:15:48.960 and you were willing to discuss it. Some players I'm 0:15:48.960 --> 0:15:50.520 not going to talk about it, but you were open 0:15:50.560 --> 0:15:52.240 to talking about it with the media over time. 0:15:52.720 --> 0:15:54.400 It's not like you talked it in existence. 0:15:54.440 --> 0:15:56.280 You played it into it a stuff, but were you 0:15:56.560 --> 0:15:58.200 kind of weary of just talking about it. 0:16:00.000 --> 0:16:01.880 I mean, I feel like the facts is the facts 0:16:01.880 --> 0:16:03.840 of it, the situation, it is what it is, and 0:16:03.880 --> 0:16:05.600 I think for me, it was one of those things 0:16:05.600 --> 0:16:08.040 where it's like I didn't want to shy away from it. 0:16:07.960 --> 0:16:09.440 Like I mean, it is what it is at the 0:16:09.480 --> 0:16:09.840 end of the day. 0:16:09.840 --> 0:16:11.600 And I think too, there is a way that to 0:16:11.640 --> 0:16:14.560 tell the story without I feel like, giving too much 0:16:14.600 --> 0:16:17.040 detail and still keeping a professional soft fly. For me, 0:16:17.080 --> 0:16:19.160 it was always something that I was open to talk 0:16:19.160 --> 0:16:21.480 about and I think people should know the truth. I 0:16:21.480 --> 0:16:24.160 f like for me, I didn't want things to be 0:16:24.520 --> 0:16:27.240 left unspoken. So I mean just going out there and 0:16:27.280 --> 0:16:29.160 being able to tell tell my part, like I said, 0:16:29.200 --> 0:16:30.760 and I still being able to keep a professional something 0:16:30.760 --> 0:16:31.600 that I've always wanted to. 0:16:31.600 --> 0:16:33.160 Do from the moment you were drafted. 0:16:33.160 --> 0:16:37.240 I remember you were working out the day after your draft, 0:16:37.320 --> 0:16:40.520 like you went right to the gym right. That work 0:16:40.800 --> 0:16:43.320 has seriously paid off over the course. You worked really 0:16:43.320 --> 0:16:45.600 hard at this in the off season, in season to 0:16:45.680 --> 0:16:48.000 make and fine tune who you are as a corner 0:16:48.000 --> 0:16:50.520 and as a football player and as a man, when 0:16:50.560 --> 0:16:53.680 you reflect back on those moments, that excitement of getting 0:16:53.680 --> 0:16:55.960 into the league and then proving who you are and 0:16:56.000 --> 0:16:59.280 what you're where you're going, can you conceptualize that, put 0:16:59.280 --> 0:16:59.880 it in context. 0:17:01.640 --> 0:17:06.280 I mean, I think it's tough, just tough. 0:17:06.320 --> 0:17:08.399 I think I think for me, it's just being built 0:17:08.440 --> 0:17:11.200 on the right things, just building around the right foundation. 0:17:11.320 --> 0:17:12.800 I feel like even like my brother, like I said 0:17:12.800 --> 0:17:15.440 about my brother, like he's he's somebody that's always put 0:17:15.480 --> 0:17:17.280 a lot into me. He's always shown me and led 0:17:17.320 --> 0:17:19.359 by example, like what hard work looks like. So it's like, 0:17:19.359 --> 0:17:21.680 no matter what matter what's going on, there's always work 0:17:21.680 --> 0:17:23.360 to be done. And it's like, even coming in here 0:17:23.400 --> 0:17:25.560 this morning to talk about the contract, it's like, all right, 0:17:25.640 --> 0:17:26.800 now we know what we gotta do in the next 0:17:26.840 --> 0:17:28.840 three years, Like how we're gonna train, what we gotta do, 0:17:28.960 --> 0:17:31.040 the things that the thing that we got to accomplished 0:17:31.040 --> 0:17:33.520 on the field. So I feel like just staying true 0:17:33.560 --> 0:17:35.840 to that, just staying true to the work ethics, stand 0:17:35.920 --> 0:17:38.800 true to who I am, and just continue to get better. 0:17:38.800 --> 0:17:40.080 And I feel like that's what all this is about. 0:17:40.080 --> 0:17:43.119 It just continue to be committed to growth, and I 0:17:43.119 --> 0:17:45.840 think that that that's what gets you more deals and 0:17:45.880 --> 0:17:48.160 deals and deals iss just your growth, what you do 0:17:48.400 --> 0:17:50.480 of course on the football field, how you build the 0:17:50.520 --> 0:17:52.560 locker room, how you build as a leader. 0:17:52.600 --> 0:17:54.800 I think it's just about complete growth. And talked about him. 0:17:55.119 --> 0:17:56.919 You know when you look at how you have grown, 0:17:57.240 --> 0:17:58.600 where's been the biggest growth? 0:17:58.920 --> 0:18:04.200 Oh, definitely spiritually, definitely spiritually inside Just continue to I think, 0:18:04.280 --> 0:18:07.320 humble myself, just continue to I truly be a God's 0:18:07.320 --> 0:18:09.800 feelix submit to him because I feel like when you 0:18:09.920 --> 0:18:12.000 operate in a sense of pride, that's when you kind 0:18:12.000 --> 0:18:13.240 of block your blessings. 0:18:13.240 --> 0:18:14.600 That's when you don't let his life shine. 0:18:14.680 --> 0:18:17.600 I think for me, just acknowledging him and where I'm 0:18:17.600 --> 0:18:19.919 mad and everything, whether it's high, whether it's low, and 0:18:20.040 --> 0:18:22.600 just continuing to let him guide me, let him lead 0:18:22.640 --> 0:18:25.840 me because I know I've made some bad decisions when 0:18:25.920 --> 0:18:28.159 trying to operate on my own. But just continue to 0:18:29.320 --> 0:18:31.480 look to him and and things that I do. Just 0:18:31.520 --> 0:18:34.359 continue to ask him for peace, asking for discernment, just 0:18:34.400 --> 0:18:35.840 be able to make the right decision. 0:18:35.560 --> 0:18:40.719 So that maturity spiritually, emotionally, professionally. How does that translate 0:18:41.040 --> 0:18:43.440 to the locker room. How does that translate to Sundays 0:18:43.600 --> 0:18:44.520 for Jalen Johnson. 0:18:45.760 --> 0:18:47.800 I mean, it's all all one and the same. I 0:18:47.800 --> 0:18:50.240