Bears bring back veteran CB on 1-year deal

The Chicago Bears are bringing back veteran cornerback Jaylon Jones on a one-year contract, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Friday. The move will keep one of the team’s experienced reserve defensive backs in Chicago, following the departure of several members of the secondary in free agency.

Jones, 28, originally joined the Bears as an undrafted free agent in 2022 after playing college football at Ole Miss Rebels. Since entering the league, he has logged 56 career games with six starts. In his first run with Chicago from 2022 to 2024, he played in 41 games, starting five, and was an impactful contributor on special teams.

Before the 2025 season, Jones signed with the Arizona Cardinals as a free agent but was waived during final roster cuts. The Bears claimed him off waivers on Aug. 27, bringing him back to the roster. He went on to appear in 15 games this past season, starting once and recording 16 total tackles and one forced fumble. Twelve of those tackles came on special teams. His only start came in Week 8 against the Baltimore Ravens.

Jones returns to a crowded cornerback group that includes Jaylon Johnson, Kyler Gordon, Tyrique Stevenson, Josh Blackwell, Terell Smith, Zah Frazier, Dallis Flowers, Dontae Manning, and recently signed Cam Lewis. The re-signing comes after multiple Chicago defensive backs, including Kevin Byard, Jaquan Brisker, Nahshon Wright, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, and Jonathan Owens, agreed to one-year deals with other teams.

The Cubs went 11-6 in the 2025 regular season, earning their first winning season since 2018 and their first playoff berth since 2020, while ending a seven-year NFC North title drought. However, their pass defense remained a weakness, ranking 22nd in the NFL and surrendering 227.2 passing yards per game.

Retaining depth players like Jones is part of the team’s effort to plug gaps in the secondary ahead of the second season under head coach Ben Johnson.

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