The Bears have a multitude of young players waiting for extensions. Some of those players are Darnell Mooney, Cole Kmet, and Jaylon Johnson. All three, and some others, are good players that seem open to staying in Chicago. Will all of them stay in Chicago is the question, though. Let’s go through a few players that need to stay in Chi-town.
Darnell Mooney
Mooney was a steal in the fifth round of the 2020 NFL draft. He has over 2000 yards in his three-year career and has built great chemistry with QB Justin Fields. There is some question about his ability to be a number one receiver, due to his size, but he has proved that he can be one of the best number two’s in the league. He had over 1000 yards and five touchdowns in 2021 when he was the number two to Allen Robinson. With the receiver market exploding, there should be no question that Mooney gets a (relatively cheap) extension.
Cole Kmet
Kmet has improved steadily over his first three seasons. While he did have fewer yards this year(544) than last year(612), he had seven touchdowns this season. That’s seven more than he had last year. Kmet doesn’t need to be a big play/big yardage receiver for the Bears, he just needs to be a red zone threat. That’s exactly what he was in the second half of the 2022 season. And just like Mooney, he would likely command a smaller price tag than a veteran Tight End in free agency. He is another building block that the Bears need to build around and they must keep him in the building.
Jaylon Johnson
Johnson has been the undisputed number-one CB on the Bears when he’s on the field. He has struggled with his fair share of injuries in his three-year career, but he has been a top-ten cornerback in the league when healthy. He may ask for a lot of money, but he deserves every penny. Once the Bears get a solid D-line and another Corner Back to back him up, he will look like the top-ten corner he can be.
Justin Jones
Jones was a free-agent pickup this past offseason, and he performed very well, considering his surroundings. He had three sacks and 12 tackles for loss while playing in all 17 games. He was reliable against the run game and held his own up the middle. If the Bears can upgrade the talent around him, he could be a solid starter or a phenomenal backup. He played his heart out this season and earned a second contract.
