WEBVTT - Johnson on adapting to new defense | All Access 0:00:01.280 --> 0:00:04.720 The following is a presentation of the Chicago Bears Network 0:00:04.840 --> 0:00:08.760 and Chicago Bears dot Com. Download the Chicago Bears official 0:00:08.800 --> 0:00:11.760 mobile app for up to the minute Bears content every 0:00:11.880 --> 0:00:16.439 day and now welcome to Bears All Access. Your all 0:00:16.480 --> 0:00:21.160 access passing to Chicago Bears football. Bears All Access is 0:00:21.200 --> 0:00:25.200 brought to you by IGS Energy and sponsored by Athletical 0:00:25.200 --> 0:00:30.040 Physical Therapy and cd W. And Hey, great Friday Night. 0:00:30.080 --> 0:00:34.720 Everybody football coming back to Soldier Field preseason style tomorrow morning, 0:00:34.800 --> 0:00:38.199 eleven am. Pregaming noon kickoff on NewsRadio one O five 0:00:38.320 --> 0:00:41.279 nine w BBM. I'm Jeff Johnny Ac my broadcast partner Tom. 0:00:41.360 --> 0:00:43.400 They are also rare and ready to go. We have 0:00:43.479 --> 0:00:45.920 broken this thing down in every which way already. We're 0:00:45.920 --> 0:00:50.600 excited to see what Matt Eberflus, Allan Williams, defensive coordinator, Lujetsie, 0:00:50.680 --> 0:00:55.360 the offensive coordinator, and special teams coordinator Richard Hytower having 0:00:55.440 --> 0:00:59.960 store for Kansas City and their head coach Andy Reid. Look, 0:01:00.000 --> 0:01:02.240 it's like a fifteen to twenty plays for the first team. 0:01:02.280 --> 0:01:05.840 It's fluid, Tom. It depends on what guys we're talking about, 0:01:05.840 --> 0:01:08.920 but we're all looking to see what QB one does well, 0:01:08.959 --> 0:01:12.759 you know. Detroit head coach Dan Campbell also said Jared 0:01:12.880 --> 0:01:15.360 Goff is going to play the entire first quarter. He 0:01:15.480 --> 0:01:18.479 played five or six plays and he was gone. So 0:01:18.520 --> 0:01:20.920 there's nothing ext in the stone by how much you 0:01:20.920 --> 0:01:25.440 can play and you know how many reps. So I'm 0:01:25.480 --> 0:01:28.440 interested to watch what the team is going to bring 0:01:28.440 --> 0:01:31.479 to the field because there's been so many things talked 0:01:31.520 --> 0:01:34.200 about what they want this team to be in the 0:01:34.280 --> 0:01:37.440 long run with this new coaching staff, and tomorrow will 0:01:37.480 --> 0:01:39.960 begin that evidence. And one of the guys we're gonna 0:01:39.959 --> 0:01:42.680 be looking forward to watching is Braxton Jones, the rookie 0:01:42.760 --> 0:01:45.440 left tackle out of Southern Utah fifth round pick. This 0:01:45.480 --> 0:01:47.040 is what he had to say about where he's at 0:01:47.160 --> 0:01:49.440 right now, working with the first team head to get 0:01:49.440 --> 0:01:52.000 into the first preseason game. All right, we'll get to 0:01:52.000 --> 0:01:54.000 that in just a minute as we get you set 0:01:54.040 --> 0:01:57.080 for Bears football tomorrow. Some of the things we're looking 0:01:57.120 --> 0:01:59.040 at right now in terms of what the Bears are 0:01:59.040 --> 0:02:02.480 gonna do. The running game, obviously is something of significance 0:02:02.560 --> 0:02:05.720 tom It is something that I'm excited to see. This 0:02:05.920 --> 0:02:09.000 wide zone. We keep hearing about a stable of running backs. 0:02:09.000 --> 0:02:12.160 Not certain if David Montgomery will play tomorrow, but there's 0:02:12.200 --> 0:02:15.600 plenty there, include the undrafted rookies and Cleil Herbert from 0:02:15.600 --> 0:02:17.639 a year ago. Yeah, Jeff, you have to have an 0:02:17.639 --> 0:02:20.320 impact with the running game because if you want Justin 0:02:20.440 --> 0:02:23.679 Fields to be everything that he possibly can be, you 0:02:23.840 --> 0:02:27.160 better have somewhat of a dominant portion of your running 0:02:27.200 --> 0:02:30.600 game to have such a factor of the defensive coordinator 0:02:30.680 --> 0:02:33.960 trying to stop that one element that it opens up 0:02:34.000 --> 0:02:38.280 more opportunities for the rest of the team and Justin specifically. So, yeah, 0:02:38.440 --> 0:02:41.880 we've heard so much about this outside zone running play, 0:02:42.120 --> 0:02:45.120 and if they do run it perfectly, look for Justin 0:02:45.200 --> 0:02:48.480 to get more opportunities down field. All right, here's that 0:02:48.560 --> 0:02:52.280 Braxton Jones. I've got a ways to go, But just 0:02:52.840 --> 0:02:58.120 understanding how fast it is actually, even with linebackers and 0:02:58.560 --> 0:03:01.680 all that type of stuff. Guy, have a better understanding 0:03:01.680 --> 0:03:04.760 of how fast it is. But doing that into my 0:03:04.840 --> 0:03:07.560 game and stuff like that. And that's another thing too. 0:03:08.160 --> 0:03:11.040 It's not always going fast fast fast. It's kind of 0:03:11.080 --> 0:03:14.600 like you gotta hold space a little bit more. You 0:03:14.639 --> 0:03:17.080 can't just go fly out to anything because they're so 0:03:17.200 --> 0:03:19.840 quick they'll you know, they'll come right in under you 0:03:20.080 --> 0:03:22.880 or something like that you just gotta really lay its 0:03:22.960 --> 0:03:26.799 happy medium. I really like tom how he explains what 0:03:26.840 --> 0:03:30.880 he's seeing. He does so very thoroughly and pretty transparently 0:03:30.919 --> 0:03:33.680 about what he's learning and how he's going about his business, 0:03:33.919 --> 0:03:36.200 and we continue to be impressed. He's got the feat, 0:03:36.400 --> 0:03:38.920 he's got the length, He's using that length in a 0:03:38.960 --> 0:03:41.120 way he never did back in college. He's got all 0:03:41.120 --> 0:03:44.720 the tools, as he says, to learn this position the 0:03:44.840 --> 0:03:46.920 right way at the NFL level to stop those edge 0:03:46.960 --> 0:03:48.880 rushers in clear space in the running game. Now we 0:03:48.880 --> 0:03:50.800 gotta see if he can prove it. Yeah. I mean, 0:03:50.960 --> 0:03:53.520 reality's gonna hit you in the face tomorrow. You know 0:03:53.640 --> 0:03:55.680 you're gonna break the huddle and you're not gonna have 0:03:55.760 --> 0:03:59.200 coaches around you. So it's about what Braxton Jones can 0:03:59.240 --> 0:04:02.400 do to get himself prepared and an understanding of the 0:04:02.440 --> 0:04:05.400 guys he's playing against, because he's gonna guy. He's gonna 0:04:05.440 --> 0:04:08.240 have guys coming in here. They're gonna be keep competing 0:04:08.320 --> 0:04:11.200 equally as hard for a spot on their roster. So 0:04:11.480 --> 0:04:15.680 I think tomorrow really is the beginning of what can 0:04:15.760 --> 0:04:18.400 be a great future for a guy like Braxton Jones 0:04:18.520 --> 0:04:21.280 and another rookie Jaquan Brisker. We're looking forward to seeing 0:04:21.360 --> 0:04:24.160 him as well. He likes the way the chemistry is 0:04:24.160 --> 0:04:26.280 brewing right now, the back end of that defense with 0:04:26.560 --> 0:04:29.120 the veteran and two time pro bowler Ready Jackson, just 0:04:29.200 --> 0:04:32.000 off the field, just knowing, you know, still communicating off 0:04:32.040 --> 0:04:34.920 the field, just make sure we're still watch a film 0:04:35.320 --> 0:04:37.480 and they own the field, just knowing where he's gonna be. 0:04:37.880 --> 0:04:39.760 We just work on the same page, just you know, 0:04:39.800 --> 0:04:42.479 showing different disguises and different things like that. You know, 0:04:42.480 --> 0:04:44.520 we're always you know, doing different things that we're on 0:04:44.520 --> 0:04:47.560 the same page. So really good. Yeah, with him right now, 0:04:47.600 --> 0:04:51.200 it's that that inner, inner force that he's ready to unleash. 0:04:51.240 --> 0:04:54.360 I think, you know, he's a physical guy, grew up 0:04:54.400 --> 0:04:56.240 that way, played that way at Penn State. And I 0:04:56.279 --> 0:04:57.960 like the way he's been making plays on the balls. 0:04:57.960 --> 0:05:00.600 You're catching everything yet no, but he's making plays on 0:05:00.640 --> 0:05:03.000 the ball, breaking the ball up. Well, that's gonna be 0:05:03.040 --> 0:05:06.800 the kind of the signs of his success and where 0:05:06.839 --> 0:05:09.240 he's at. Because when you come into the scheme and 0:05:09.360 --> 0:05:11.720 what they want to do defensively, how fast they want 0:05:11.720 --> 0:05:14.200 to play, how they want to disguise, the coverage and 0:05:14.240 --> 0:05:17.680 everything that's the effect of the defense. But Jeff, what's 0:05:17.720 --> 0:05:21.480 gonna happen when he has a big coverage responsibility downfield? 0:05:21.800 --> 0:05:24.279 Or what happens when a running back breaks through to 0:05:24.360 --> 0:05:27.560 the third level and has a full running start at him. 0:05:27.680 --> 0:05:31.080 That is when the differences of Jaquon Brisker is going 0:05:31.160 --> 0:05:33.880 to be shown. We know he can cover, we know 0:05:33.960 --> 0:05:36.240 that he can catch the ball, we know that he's 0:05:36.279 --> 0:05:39.320 super intelligent, and that's why he's on an NFL roster. 0:05:39.720 --> 0:05:43.680 But it's about those details of tackling. Is really gonna 0:05:43.960 --> 0:05:46.440 tell you what's happening with him? Well, the one thing 0:05:46.440 --> 0:05:49.400 you don't want to have happened, It unfortunately does happen. 0:05:49.480 --> 0:05:52.120 Knock on wood. It won't to the Bears or anybody 0:05:52.120 --> 0:05:54.400 else around the league, frankly, But you try to get 0:05:54.400 --> 0:05:57.000 out of the preseason games. It's healthy as possible. Already 0:05:57.000 --> 0:06:00.080 You're looking tonight Atlanta leading Detroit fourteen to ten of 0:06:00.160 --> 0:06:02.760 the second quarter and their first round picked there in 0:06:02.760 --> 0:06:05.279 Atlanta wide receiver Drake lund And suffered a knee injury. 0:06:05.360 --> 0:06:07.279 He had to leave the game. So you don't you 0:06:07.279 --> 0:06:10.080 don't want to see that business right now? No, But 0:06:10.720 --> 0:06:12.640 you know, Jeff, you can't really think about it. You 0:06:12.640 --> 0:06:14.679 don't want it to happen, but it's a constant threat 0:06:14.720 --> 0:06:18.360 when you do play professional football. However, that's why they 0:06:18.400 --> 0:06:21.560 sit out there and coach ninety guys. So someone is 0:06:21.600 --> 0:06:25.520 going to increase their opportunity by their performance going into 0:06:25.520 --> 0:06:28.960 this preseason. But they have to make sure on September 0:06:29.000 --> 0:06:32.000 eleven that they have a healthy roster to go into 0:06:32.080 --> 0:06:34.800 the start of the regular season. All right, coming up next, 0:06:34.839 --> 0:06:37.200 they're gonna be joined an interview I did this week 0:06:37.240 --> 0:06:40.719 with cornerback Jalen Johnson as he gets ready for his 0:06:40.760 --> 0:06:42.880 third NFL season with the Bears. It's all coming up 0:06:42.920 --> 0:06:45.360 next here on Bears All Access, brought to you by 0:06:45.360 --> 0:06:48.400 IGS Energy. At producer tonight season Prez and we also 0:06:48.440 --> 0:06:51.599 think guys always Dan Brilliant, Jordan tread up with Tom Thayer. 0:06:51.640 --> 0:06:54.360 I'm Jeff Joniak, and this is Chicago Sports Radio six 0:06:54.440 --> 0:07:00.800 seventy the Score. Welcome back to Bears All Access. It's 0:07:00.800 --> 0:07:03.440 brought to you by IGS Energy. Choose clean energy for 0:07:03.520 --> 0:07:05.919 your home at IGS dot com because every good choice 0:07:06.120 --> 0:07:08.839 adds up to a better world. Tom, they are sitting 0:07:08.880 --> 0:07:11.800 this one out, but Jalen Johnson is not the starting 0:07:11.840 --> 0:07:14.360 cornerback entering year three for the Chicago Bears, kind enough 0:07:14.360 --> 0:07:16.800 to take some time to join us before the preseason 0:07:16.840 --> 0:07:19.080 opener against Kansas City. Good to see you. Good to 0:07:19.120 --> 0:07:21.040 see you too. Hey, it's great. Honestly, I'm over here 0:07:21.080 --> 0:07:24.440 smiling because it's like you really have that voice, like 0:07:24.840 --> 0:07:28.040 a radio voice, like a really John Madden, like a 0:07:28.200 --> 0:07:32.840 real legendary like voice. Yeah, yeah, that's really see I'm blushing. Yeah. 0:07:32.840 --> 0:07:34.520 When did you know that? Like you could like you 0:07:34.560 --> 0:07:36.840 would be like, really, you know what, This is a 0:07:36.920 --> 0:07:39.440 really long story. I'll tell you to you sometime, but 0:07:39.600 --> 0:07:42.880 I I it's a miracle. Honestly. It was where hard 0:07:42.880 --> 0:07:45.840 work met opportunity. About that. But no, but you know, 0:07:45.920 --> 0:07:47.520 as a kid when you were growing up, you know 0:07:48.000 --> 0:07:52.160 you're clearly a great athlete. I thought I was, you know, 0:07:52.240 --> 0:07:54.440 and I tried to play baseball. I tried to walk 0:07:54.480 --> 0:07:57.080 on at Iowa State University as a second baseman. That 0:07:57.160 --> 0:07:59.040 lasted about four minutes. You know, how do you how 0:07:59.040 --> 0:08:00.760 did you know that this is gonna be what you 0:08:00.800 --> 0:08:03.480 wanted to do? I mean, honestly, because we all think 0:08:03.480 --> 0:08:07.360 we're gonna be somebody and if your love sports, we 0:08:07.440 --> 0:08:09.920 all played it I mean I tried to play everything. 0:08:10.080 --> 0:08:11.680 I would have been wonderful to do it, But what 0:08:11.760 --> 0:08:14.400 about you, I mean mine wasn't. Mine was a different 0:08:14.400 --> 0:08:16.640 process because I played of course, I played football and 0:08:16.640 --> 0:08:19.400 basketball growing up, but I was on varsity as a 0:08:19.440 --> 0:08:22.240 freshman in basketball, I was getting looked at like I 0:08:22.360 --> 0:08:24.880 had interest in basketball before I did football. So, I 0:08:24.880 --> 0:08:27.280 mean my first two years of high school, I was like, 0:08:27.320 --> 0:08:29.440 I might as well just hang football, love, I'm gonna 0:08:29.440 --> 0:08:32.120 just play basketball because I wasn't. I was a sophomball 0:08:32.120 --> 0:08:34.360 in varsity and not really getting too too much playing time, 0:08:35.120 --> 0:08:38.800 and then basketball was just going great for me. So 0:08:38.880 --> 0:08:41.480 I mean I almost gave football up, and then I 0:08:41.600 --> 0:08:44.080 ended up getting hurt in basketball, and like my whole 0:08:44.240 --> 0:08:47.080 perspective just saying, I'm like, nah, like I can't play 0:08:47.120 --> 0:08:50.640 football no more, like forget basketball. Yeah, then I really 0:08:50.640 --> 0:08:52.880 like started after my injury. I came back and I 0:08:52.880 --> 0:08:55.280 really just locked in. Was like, nah, I'm gonna get 0:08:55.280 --> 0:08:58.320 a basketball love. Like my love for football is later 0:08:58.360 --> 0:09:00.840 than basketball for sure. And it's like like the training, 0:09:01.040 --> 0:09:03.840 the process that I went through for basketball and football, 0:09:04.240 --> 0:09:07.080 I would I would choose football. Yeah, it must fit 0:09:07.120 --> 0:09:10.040 your personality because you gotta love this game. To play 0:09:10.600 --> 0:09:14.280 like basketball, you gotta have some specific skills too. So 0:09:14.720 --> 0:09:16.840 did you have a growth spurt or did you say, 0:09:16.920 --> 0:09:18.559 you know what, I don't know. I don't know what 0:09:19.080 --> 0:09:21.800 can I be in basketball? I mean, honestly, it was 0:09:21.880 --> 0:09:24.439 like basketball for me because I was I was small 0:09:24.480 --> 0:09:26.160 in my first two years of high school really, so 0:09:26.200 --> 0:09:28.360 I didn't get It's funny because I didn't get figured. 0:09:28.520 --> 0:09:31.640 I didn't get like my true athleticism until day after 0:09:31.679 --> 0:09:33.520 I gave it up, something like, hey, if I would 0:09:33.520 --> 0:09:37.240 have this high end this, what's your vertical? Yeah, what's 0:09:37.240 --> 0:09:39.439 your vertical? What was your vertical? High as I got 0:09:39.480 --> 0:09:42.480 to like thirty nine, there you go, it was like, dang, okay, 0:09:42.600 --> 0:09:45.040 you could shoot. You could shoot the jay. Yeah. It's 0:09:45.040 --> 0:09:46.640 like crazy because that's I got older, I got better 0:09:46.679 --> 0:09:48.280 in basketball. So I'm like, if I would have had 0:09:48.360 --> 0:09:50.920 this gun, I might have kept to it. But everything 0:09:50.960 --> 0:09:53.240 happens for a reason for sure. Yeah. The funny thing though, 0:09:53.240 --> 0:09:55.520 when I first met you and we interviewed you, because 0:09:55.559 --> 0:09:58.040 on your Twitter it's it's the NBA, So I thought, 0:09:58.280 --> 0:10:01.840 this guy loves the NBA. Here here which something different? 0:10:01.960 --> 0:10:05.080 Something different? Jalen Johnson our guest here and Chicago Sports 0:10:05.200 --> 0:10:07.440 Radio six seventy to score. This is Bears All Access 0:10:07.440 --> 0:10:10.600 brought to you by IGS Energy. So you got a 0:10:10.600 --> 0:10:15.520 new system, new people, new coaches, everything new, big big 0:10:15.559 --> 0:10:17.800 fresh coat of paint, and you're fitting in. You're smiling. 0:10:18.120 --> 0:10:21.079 That's good. Oh No, I mean honestly, football is football 0:10:21.120 --> 0:10:23.400 for me. And it's like, at the end of the day, 0:10:23.600 --> 0:10:26.120 my job is to stop people from catching the ball. 0:10:26.280 --> 0:10:30.880 So it's like my job doesn't change. My job hasn't changed. Um, 0:10:31.160 --> 0:10:34.240 the emphasis, I mean, there definitely are some things that 0:10:34.320 --> 0:10:38.319 are being preached, um, that are are different from from 0:10:38.400 --> 0:10:41.680 last year. For sure. There's definitely some principles that we 0:10:41.800 --> 0:10:43.880 played by that we want to live literally live and 0:10:43.920 --> 0:10:46.199 die by. Really um So, I mean just really adjusting 0:10:46.280 --> 0:10:49.599 to those adjusting to playing this new staff style of 0:10:49.679 --> 0:10:53.079 ball has been I mean interesting for me definitely. Um. 0:10:53.080 --> 0:10:55.920 It wasn't easy in the beginning, but as time what 0:10:56.160 --> 0:10:59.720 wasn't easy really just committing. Um. I mean it's different, 0:10:59.760 --> 0:11:04.320 like change comes, nobody's really familiar and it's like you have, Okay, 0:11:04.400 --> 0:11:06.320 well this is what you're used to doing. My first 0:11:06.320 --> 0:11:08.800 two years in the NFL, I got used to a 0:11:08.840 --> 0:11:11.000 certain way around here, and now that there is a 0:11:11.040 --> 0:11:14.320 different way, it's like, Okay, I'm not really trying to 0:11:14.320 --> 0:11:17.280 do that or like why being like this. So it's 0:11:17.320 --> 0:11:19.480 like for me, I got to a point where it's like, 0:11:19.760 --> 0:11:22.480 let me just really step back and see what they're 0:11:22.480 --> 0:11:24.800 really asking me to do, seeing what they what their 0:11:24.800 --> 0:11:27.680 true intentions are. And then once I kind of took 0:11:27.679 --> 0:11:30.240 a step back, and it's like, okay, let me just commit, 0:11:30.520 --> 0:11:33.160 let me buy in, let me push myself, and let's 0:11:33.160 --> 0:11:35.360 see where it goes. Because I mean, it's hard for 0:11:36.040 --> 0:11:40.680 me to not really buy in and expect great things 0:11:40.679 --> 0:11:42.680 to happen. So it's like, let me just really buy 0:11:42.679 --> 0:11:45.920 and let me commit and get other guys to commit, 0:11:46.000 --> 0:11:48.319 get other everybody really on the same page, and let's 0:11:48.360 --> 0:11:51.520 see where it can really go. And then really after that, 0:11:51.559 --> 0:11:54.360 I mean, we'll see when season comes. But it was 0:11:54.400 --> 0:11:57.600 really just a mental process to really commit and buy in. 0:11:57.640 --> 0:12:00.280 And I mean, now the way that they want things 0:12:00.320 --> 0:12:02.959 to go for me is it's I'm not gonna say easy, 0:12:03.080 --> 0:12:07.080 but it's definitely something that is natural for me now. 0:12:07.360 --> 0:12:10.960 So is that Jalen Johnson is changed, has changed always 0:12:11.000 --> 0:12:13.760 been hard. I wouldn't for me, I wouldn't say that 0:12:13.800 --> 0:12:16.679 change is hard because it's like, since I want to say, 0:12:16.720 --> 0:12:18.720 my freshman year at high school, I've always had like 0:12:18.800 --> 0:12:21.160 different head coaches, Like I had five head coaches in 0:12:21.160 --> 0:12:23.960 my high school career. Wow, So it's like I have change. 0:12:23.960 --> 0:12:26.520 It is inable, inevitable on this sport exactly. So I 0:12:26.559 --> 0:12:29.080 mean just have even having that was just like okay, dang, 0:12:29.160 --> 0:12:32.000 you just gotta keep recommitting to the process. And it's 0:12:32.000 --> 0:12:33.400 like at the end of the day, man, football is 0:12:33.440 --> 0:12:36.320 football covered. One is coming, one, two is two, three, 0:12:36.559 --> 0:12:38.839 Like I'll just kind of keep it, keep it simple, 0:12:38.960 --> 0:12:41.440 keep the main thing the main thing, and really buy 0:12:41.520 --> 0:12:44.640 into the philosophy that the coaches have. Um and I 0:12:44.679 --> 0:12:46.520 mean with this staff, I mean, like I said, it's 0:12:46.520 --> 0:12:49.240 definitely different, but you just really got to buy in 0:12:49.320 --> 0:12:52.480 and really give your all to it and then take 0:12:52.520 --> 0:12:54.040 the good with the good and about the back. You 0:12:54.080 --> 0:12:56.560 know what the thing is if you step back, like 0:12:56.600 --> 0:12:59.120 you just explain that you did for yourself, and if 0:12:59.120 --> 0:13:01.839 I just stepped back and yeah, your job is to 0:13:01.880 --> 0:13:05.560 prevent people from catching footballs and making sure you tackle 0:13:05.640 --> 0:13:08.600 them and take the ball away. It is pretty simple, 0:13:08.679 --> 0:13:10.600 but one of the hardest things to do for sure. 0:13:10.800 --> 0:13:16.720 You know it sounds exactly you gotta you know, are 0:13:16.760 --> 0:13:19.360 you better? I'm not saying you weren't before. I'm saying 0:13:19.679 --> 0:13:22.880 as you get older in this sport, at this level, 0:13:22.920 --> 0:13:24.960 and now you're getting tutored in a different way by 0:13:24.960 --> 0:13:27.839 this staff, and they have specific things you want in 0:13:27.840 --> 0:13:30.640 this particular defense. I'm not going to just give it 0:13:30.679 --> 0:13:34.800 a blanket cover two. There is that, but there's there's elements. Yeah, 0:13:34.840 --> 0:13:37.440 but you know, trusting your eyes, I mean, are your 0:13:37.480 --> 0:13:40.600 eyes better trained three years in than they were when 0:13:40.600 --> 0:13:43.480 you first got here or they Yeah, okay, that's that's 0:13:43.520 --> 0:13:47.160 not even a question. Just the reads, the progressions, I mean, 0:13:47.240 --> 0:13:50.400 they just comes. It comes natural at this point. It 0:13:50.440 --> 0:13:53.160 comes easier to reads and even adjusting. Like you said, 0:13:53.160 --> 0:13:56.240 they're in minor intricates in the defense that are different. 0:13:56.400 --> 0:13:58.439 Your reads may be here and you gotta look at 0:13:58.440 --> 0:14:00.920 certain things and it's like, hey, you would have asked 0:14:00.960 --> 0:14:02.600 him to do this my rookie year, and I'm like, damn, 0:14:02.679 --> 0:14:05.000 this is a whole lot like but now it's like 0:14:05.120 --> 0:14:07.559 I've been doing this for some time now, my third year, 0:14:07.600 --> 0:14:09.680 getting a lot of reps. I have thousands and thousands 0:14:09.679 --> 0:14:12.480 of reps So I mean, really what they're asking me 0:14:12.520 --> 0:14:15.080 to do? Is it easy transition? Because I've been doing 0:14:15.080 --> 0:14:18.640 it for some time now, going on my third year. Um, 0:14:18.760 --> 0:14:22.000 so I mean it's really not not too bad at all. 0:14:22.640 --> 0:14:25.360 Eyes are gonna be on the quarterback, yeah, period, not 0:14:25.520 --> 0:14:27.680 much turning the back to the quarterback and this defense. 0:14:27.800 --> 0:14:29.960 Is that true? Oh for sure? Yeah, I mean there's 0:14:30.000 --> 0:14:32.800 definitely like they're definitely some times where we gotta lock 0:14:32.880 --> 0:14:34.920 up and we gotta go man to man, but that's 0:14:35.000 --> 0:14:37.640 that's with any team. But they're definitely are more emphasis 0:14:37.720 --> 0:14:40.920 with eyes on the quarterback and breaking on the ball. 0:14:41.280 --> 0:14:43.520 So coach he reflus when he first got here, and 0:14:43.840 --> 0:14:45.920 but he said it's gonna be the hardest thing you've 0:14:45.960 --> 0:14:49.040 ever gone through as a player. Has that proven to 0:14:49.080 --> 0:14:51.440 be true? Because he did tell he's told me he said, 0:14:51.560 --> 0:14:53.600 you wait a year from now, players are gonna come 0:14:53.640 --> 0:14:55.280 and say, yeah, coach, that was the hardest thing I 0:14:55.320 --> 0:14:57.160 ever had to do. Has it been the hardest thing 0:14:57.200 --> 0:15:00.320 you've had to do so far in my professional career? Yes? 0:15:01.720 --> 0:15:07.360 And why because it's like there's in a sense when 0:15:07.400 --> 0:15:10.640 you get like like in college college campus, a whole 0:15:10.640 --> 0:15:14.400 lot harder than NFL NFL camp. But it's like when 0:15:14.440 --> 0:15:18.000 you get kind of to a professional level, there's normally 0:15:18.040 --> 0:15:21.040 there's a way of doing things. They're the way okay, 0:15:21.080 --> 0:15:22.800 like yeah, you burst to the ball, you get your 0:15:22.800 --> 0:15:25.080 three hard steps, but it's like no, no, no, we're 0:15:25.400 --> 0:15:29.280 full speed. Like some of the expectations are almost like unrealistic, 0:15:29.360 --> 0:15:31.480 like coach like ain't like you want me to do this, 0:15:31.480 --> 0:15:34.080 this and this, like okay. So I mean in that 0:15:34.200 --> 0:15:37.800 aspect of having to adapt to really the expectation, I 0:15:37.800 --> 0:15:39.720 feel like that's the hardest part. But I mean we're 0:15:40.280 --> 0:15:43.920 where our body should be in shape, and we should 0:15:43.920 --> 0:15:46.040 our body should be able to adapt really on the 0:15:46.080 --> 0:15:47.920 physical side of things, if you're taking care of your 0:15:47.920 --> 0:15:51.080 buying new things right, But really to just train your mind, 0:15:51.640 --> 0:15:53.520 it really is starting in the mind because I mean 0:15:53.560 --> 0:15:56.280 just really being able to say I'm going to push myself. 0:15:56.360 --> 0:15:58.120 I mean you're going to get tired in practice, and 0:15:58.480 --> 0:16:01.080 it's really just having that trained thought or developing that 0:16:01.200 --> 0:16:04.040 habit of let's run, keep running, keep running, keep running, 0:16:04.080 --> 0:16:07.040 keep running, keep going. That's that's that's where it it's 0:16:07.080 --> 0:16:10.040 hard at well, you know, like Tom always says, fatigue 0:16:10.080 --> 0:16:16.520 makes cowards of us. All gets tire fast exactly. Jalen Johnson, 0:16:16.560 --> 0:16:19.240 our guest. We're gonna step away, get a commercial break 0:16:19.280 --> 0:16:21.960 in here, and then another segment with the Bears starting 0:16:22.000 --> 0:16:25.520 cornerback on the eve of the preseason opener against the 0:16:25.600 --> 0:16:28.440 Kansas City Chiefs. This is Chicago Sports Radio six seventy 0:16:28.480 --> 0:16:34.960 to score. This segment of Bears All Access is brought 0:16:35.000 --> 0:16:38.080 to you by Athletical Physical Therapy. Visit Athletical dot com 0:16:38.120 --> 0:16:40.440 to request an appointment in clinic or virtually and start 0:16:40.480 --> 0:16:43.840 feeling better tomorrow. Jalen Johnson, our guest here on Chicago 0:16:43.880 --> 0:16:46.080 Sports Radio six seventy. The score tom there will be 0:16:46.080 --> 0:16:49.960 along in a while. The chemistry, as much as the 0:16:50.040 --> 0:16:53.640 orchestration is necessary from a footwork standpoint on the offensive 0:16:53.680 --> 0:16:56.440 line or the stunts and the game's upfront for a 0:16:56.480 --> 0:16:58.880 defensive line. We say it all the time, it's got 0:16:58.880 --> 0:17:02.239 to be spot on in the chemistry on the secondary 0:17:02.280 --> 0:17:05.399 side as well. Do you guys feel, even with some 0:17:05.440 --> 0:17:08.640 new young bloods and Eddie Jackson and yourself, that you 0:17:08.640 --> 0:17:11.720 guys are really making Hay here in that regard? Oh yeah, 0:17:11.720 --> 0:17:14.920 we're built. I thought it was a complete reset. Yeah, really, 0:17:14.960 --> 0:17:18.600 everything that we kind of had from like from a 0:17:18.640 --> 0:17:22.239 scheme perspective, I find it's totally different, which means our 0:17:22.240 --> 0:17:25.200 bond is going to slightly shift because we're being asked 0:17:25.240 --> 0:17:28.119 to do different things. We're not playing the defense the 0:17:28.119 --> 0:17:30.200 same way. So I mean normally when it's like Okay, Eddie, 0:17:30.240 --> 0:17:32.800 I know I got you in the post, isn't the 0:17:32.880 --> 0:17:35.200 same now because it's like his reads are slightly different 0:17:35.280 --> 0:17:39.320 or he may have something a different responsibility. So I mean, 0:17:39.400 --> 0:17:42.840 definitely gotta keep learning the defense together and learning okay, 0:17:42.880 --> 0:17:44.919 when you can have some help, or when you can 0:17:44.960 --> 0:17:47.400 take a rich because you know you got your safety help, 0:17:47.440 --> 0:17:50.320 and when you can and can't use them. So I mean, 0:17:50.359 --> 0:17:52.720 really just getting on that same page. It really learning 0:17:52.720 --> 0:17:56.520 the defense and bonding and jelling in that together. I'm 0:17:56.680 --> 0:17:58.960 just seeing really just I mean it's something we learned 0:17:59.000 --> 0:18:01.320 something new each and every day with each and every situation. 0:18:01.480 --> 0:18:04.640 Just how we all see how a play comes out 0:18:04.720 --> 0:18:06.600 or Okay, are you going to stay hi? Are you 0:18:06.600 --> 0:18:08.639 gonna stay low on this if he comes out like this, 0:18:08.760 --> 0:18:10.639 if he comes behind the linebacker, because are you going 0:18:10.680 --> 0:18:12.720 to take him? You want me to take him? Just really, 0:18:13.160 --> 0:18:16.280 I feel like messing up helps us build and bond 0:18:16.320 --> 0:18:19.120 together and figure out what's the best way to play 0:18:19.160 --> 0:18:20.920 it and how I see it and how he sees it. 0:18:21.480 --> 0:18:23.560 And I felt like everybody's really trying to figure all 0:18:23.600 --> 0:18:26.000 that out together. I mean, not just me and Eddie Jaquan. 0:18:26.119 --> 0:18:28.639 He's doing a good job and asking me, hey, how 0:18:28.640 --> 0:18:30.479 do you see this? Or I tell him, hey how 0:18:30.520 --> 0:18:32.680 do you see this? Just so we can really bond 0:18:32.720 --> 0:18:34.359 together because there's no doubt that he's going to be 0:18:34.400 --> 0:18:37.040 on the field, So I mean just really finding out 0:18:37.359 --> 0:18:40.200 how gods really see the offense or see this defense, 0:18:40.280 --> 0:18:43.040 and really continue to learn. I mean even the coaches, 0:18:43.040 --> 0:18:46.480 they're still making adjustments to the defense. So really top 0:18:46.520 --> 0:18:49.280 to bottom, just really learning and jaeling together. You believe 0:18:49.320 --> 0:18:51.600 in yourself, otherwise you wouldn't be here. When you get 0:18:51.640 --> 0:18:53.719 a new regime, it's the first time for you at 0:18:53.720 --> 0:18:57.960 the professional level. It's only natural your new bosses. Did 0:18:57.960 --> 0:19:00.240 you ever fear if they believed in you? Oh, one 0:19:00.320 --> 0:19:04.680 hundred percent? And if I felt like it wasn't anything 0:19:04.760 --> 0:19:07.760 that I did or didn't do. I just felt like 0:19:07.840 --> 0:19:12.199 it's different watching it on film versus coming in and 0:19:12.800 --> 0:19:16.240 having somebody in your system. Um, and it's like they 0:19:16.320 --> 0:19:18.920 have their own way of doing things. Their values are 0:19:19.560 --> 0:19:22.520 different than what we were doing previously in the past. 0:19:22.560 --> 0:19:24.800 So I feel like what you've seen on film, I 0:19:24.840 --> 0:19:27.280 felt there was no question from a talent standpoint, I don't. 0:19:27.480 --> 0:19:29.760 I don't think that should have ever been a question. 0:19:29.840 --> 0:19:33.440 But I feel like my work ethic may have been 0:19:33.520 --> 0:19:35.360 in question if I really was going to work hard, 0:19:35.359 --> 0:19:38.000 if I was gonna buy you in my attitude um. 0:19:38.680 --> 0:19:40.520