Chicago Bears: 5 Biggest position battles at 2020 training camp

4. Starting right cornerback

With the release of Prince Amukamara, the Chicago Bears will have a new face opposite of Kyle Fuller. Artie Burns and second-round draft pick Jaylon Johnson will compete to be the starter.

Burns came over from the Pittsburgh Steelers. He was their first-round pick (26th overall) in the 2016 NFL Draft. He started out well, recording three interceptions in his rookie season. He only intercepted one for the next three seasons, however. Additionally, he ended up losing his starting spot and his snaps dropped drastically until the Steelers cut bait with him.

The Bears hope that a new place and a battle could bring the old Burns back. They drafted Jaylon Johnson in the second round (50th overall) in this year’s draft. Johnson fell to the Bears’ lap because of injury concern. He was rated as a first-round prospect before the draft before falling to 50. As a result, the Bears have themselves a motivated player who wants to show the rest of the league that they made a mistake not picking him.

Burns has the advantage of understanding how NFL receivers work. Johnson has to pick that up since he hasn’t played an NFL receiver yet. Johnson has many tools, however. He is an aggressive (but not too aggressive) cornerback who does a good job of knocking receivers off their route.

Johnson enters the league much like Burns did — confident after succeeding in college. Burns lost his confidence, though. The Steelers used him less and less and that affected him. He has to get that confidence back.

No matter who loses this battle, he’ll end up with a chance to contribute. These are two good players and if the two show how good they are during their battle, defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano will figure out a way to find some time on the field. If both play well, they could help strengthen the Bears’ secondary even without the starting job.