Bears Activate CBs Jaylon Johnson, Kyler Gordon From IR
When the Bears take on the Eagles in this year’s Black Friday game, they will do so with a pair of notable reinforcements in the secondary. Both Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon are set to play tomorrow. 
Johnson and Gordon will be activated from IR in time for Friday’s game, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports. Both players remained on IR through Week 12. Each have continued to make progress in their respective recoveries, however. As such, they will be available against the Eagles after drawing a questionable designation on the team’s injury report. The moves are now official.
Johnson seemed to be lost for the year after just one game played following his core muscle surgery. He returned to practice roughly two weeks ago, however, setting up an activation in relatively short order. Getting the two-time Pro Bowler back in the fold will represent a major boost for Chicago’s CB room, particularly on the perimeter.
Similarly, Gordon’s return will give the Bears their preferred option in the slot. His practice window opened last week. Gordon inked a three-year, $40MM extension in April, making him (like Johnson) a key figure on defense for Chicago now and into the future. Both starters will look to remain healthy the rest of the way as the Bears (8-3) attempt to maintain their lead in the NFC North.
With that said, takeaways have not been an issue for the team during its shorthanded stretch in the secondary. Chicago’s 16 interceptions lead the NFL, and Nahshon Wright has enjoyed a stellar campaign with five interceptions and 10 pass deflections through 11 games in a first-team role. It will be interesting to see if Wright’s role and playing time are affected with Johnson and Gordon back in the fold.
This news will leave the Bears with three IR activations for the remainder of the regular season. Offensive tackles Braxton Jones and Kiran Amegadjie remain on injured reserve at this time. Bringing one or both of them onto the active roster will leave Chicago near the limit of eight for the campaign.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/24/25
Today’s practice squad moves:
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: WR K.J. Osborn
Chicago Bears
- Signed: LB Dominique Hampton, TE Qadir Ismail, DL Jeremiah Martin
- Placed on IR: TE Nikola Kalinic
Denver Broncos
- Signed: OT Marques Cox
Houston Texans
- Signed: DB Ameer Speed
Kansas City Chiefs
- Released: WR Jimmy Holiday
New York Giants
- Signed: TE Maximilian Mang
- Released: K Jude McAtamney
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: DT Anthony Goodlow
Bears Place LB Tremaine Edmunds On IR
3:32pm: The Bears indeed placed Edmunds on injured reserve today as they expect him to miss four to six weeks because of his groin injury, per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. Chicago is leaving the door open for Edmunds to come back for a potential playoff run. Meanwhile, cornerbacks Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon will not yet be activated from IR.
Joining Edmunds on IR will be backup running back Roschon Johnson. He and recently activated fellow back Travis Homer were ruled out for tomorrow, so practice squad rusher Brittain Brown has been signed to the 53-man roster, along with practice squad linebacker Carl Jones Jr., to fill the newly vacant roster slots. Tight end Nikola Kalinic and offensive lineman Jordan McFadden have been designated as the Bears’ two standard gameday practice squad elevations who will revert back to the taxi squad after tomorrow’s game.
1:58pm: Although the Bears haven’t announced it, their media website indicates that they’ve placed linebacker Tremaine Edmunds on IR, per Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. The Bears have already ruled out Edmunds for Week 12 with a groin injury.
If the Bears do put Edmunds on IR, it would require at least a four-game absence. Even if that doesn’t happen, a source told Biggs that Edmunds is likely to miss multiple weeks.
With the Bears at 7-3 and pushing for their first playoff berth since 2020, a long-term Edmunds absence would be an awful development for their defense. The career-long starter and former Bills first-round pick has been a key piece for the Bears since they signed him to a four-year, $72.5MM contract in 2023. Now in his eighth NFL season, Edmunds has been one of the league’s most productive linebackers this year.
Just 10 games into 2025, Edmunds has already matched a career high with four interceptions, and his nine passes defensed are tied for his second-highest mark. His 97.4% snap share ranks third among Bears defenders, trailing safeties Jaquan Brisker and Kevin Byard. With 89 tackles, Edmunds is on track to go over 100 yet again. The Virginia Tech product has recorded triple-digit tackles in all of his professional seasons, but his streak could be in jeopardy if he misses significant time.
Edmunds’ output this year has led Pro Football Focus to rank his performance 20th among 81 qualifying LBs. He and T.J. Edwards (ranked 13th) have formed a top-notch duo when healthy, though the latter is also out of commission. Multiple injuries have limited Edwards to five games this season. Edwards underwent surgery on a broken hand earlier this month, and he’ll miss his third straight game Sunday against the AFC North-leading Steelers.
Noah Sewell has filled in for Edwards, but he’s dealing with an elbow injury that will shelve him for the Pittsburgh game. That means the Bears won’t have any of their top three linebackers this week.
The injuries to Edmunds, Edwards, and Sewell leave D’Marco Jackson, fourth-round rookie Ruben Hyppolite, and Amen Ogbongbemiga as the only healthy LBs on Chicago’s active roster. Ogbongbemiga is the lone member of the trio who has made an NFL start (he picked up two with the Chargers back in 2021), but he has played exclusively on special teams in two games this season.
Bears Designate Kyler Gordon To Return From IR
The Bears designated cornerback Kyler Gordon to return from injured reserve on Wednesday, per a team announcement.
Gordon has dealt with multiple injuries already this season. His hamstring sidelined him for the first five weeks of the year, though he was not placed on an injured list. He went down again in Week 7 with groin and calf issues that landed him on injured reserve in late October.
The Bears expressed optimism last week that Gordon would return this year (along with fellow injured cornerback Jaylon Johnson). That optimism has materialized in the form of a return to practice, bringing Gordon one step closer to re-joining his team on game days.
Gordon broke out in 2024 as one of the league’s top slot corners and earned a three-year, $40MM extension this offseason. During his first stint on the sidelines this year, Nick McCloud stepped up as the Bears’ nickel. During his second absence, the Bears have relied on C.J. Gardner-Johnson in the slot, who arrived in Chicago shortly after Gordon was placed on injured reserve.
Head coach Ben Johnson praised Gardner-Johnson on Wednesday when asked about the team’s plans for Gordon’s return, saying (via ESPN’s Courtney Cronin) that the veteran safety is “a guy we’re going to want on the field.”
The Bears have a few different options to use both Gordon and Gardner-Johnson once Gordon is ready to play. Obviously, rotating the two early on would be an effective way to ease Gordon back into action, which may be a key consideration after multiple injuries this season. Gardner-Johnson has also played 47 snaps in the box (and 16 off the edge) in his last two games in Chicago, per Pro Football Focus (subscription required), so he could take on a prominent role in
Gordon will have 21 days to practice with the team before he must be activated to the 53-man roster or revert to season-ending injured reserve.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/18/25
Here are the latest practice squad moves around the NFL:
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: OL Andrew Steuber
Buffalo Bills
- Signed: CB Brandon Codrington
Carolina Panthers
- Released: S Israel Mukuamu
Chicago Bears
- Signed: LB Jalen Reeves-Maybin
Dallas Cowboys
- Released: C Wesley French
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: DE Viliami Fehoko, S George Odum, WR Eli Pancol, DT Chris Wormley
- Released: DE Tanoh Kpassagnon, TE Maximilian Mang, CB Troy Pride
Las Vegas Raiders
- Released: OT Leroy Watson
New England Patriots
- Signed: DL Fabien Lovett Sr.
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: WR John Rhys Plumlee
- Released: S Jack Henderson
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: RB Velus Jones, WR Brenden Rice
- Released: TE Marshall Lang, CB Mike Reid
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: QB Adrian Martinez
- Released: RB Sincere McCormick
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: S Marcus Banks
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: WR Lance McCutcheon, WR Kristian Wilkerson
Reeves-Maybin, the current NFLPA president, spent most of his career with the Lions but was released this offseason. He worked out with the 49ers in October and now returns to the NFC North with the Bears.
Odum began his NFL career in Indianapolis and is now returning to the Colts after a three-year stint with the 49ers. He will likely provide depth on special teams when elevated from the practice squad.
Kpassagnon, meanwhile, will be looking for his third team this season. He signed in Chicago this offseason to reunite with Dennis Allen, the Bears’ defensive coordinator and Kpassagnon’s former coach in New Orleans. He played 89 snaps across five games in Chicago before he was released. He then signed with the Colts’ practice squad, but did not make any appearances in blue and white.
The Seahawks signed Jones to their practice squad, but he was released the following day in a health-related move, per ESPN’s Brady Henderson. Rice, the son of NFL legend Jerry Rice, will get to play for one of his father’s former teams. Jerry Rice played for the Seahawks during his last season in 2004.
Commanders To Sign K Jake Moody Off Bears’ Practice Squad
It has not taken long for the Commanders to find their Matt Gay replacement. The veteran was cut earlier today, and his successor has already been identified.
Washington is signing Jake Moody off the Bears’ practice squad, as first reported by NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. Moody ended up making two appearances with Chicago, having signed there after his inconsistent San Francisco tenure came to an end early in the campaign. Moody’s brief stint with the Bears saw him connect on eight of his nine field goal attempts and all three of his XP tries.
The 49ers selected Moody with the 99th pick in the 2023 draft, making him the fifth kicker since 2000 to be selected in the first three rounds. The Michigan product ended up earning PFWA All-Rookie Team honors that season after he converted 84 percent of his FGA and 98.4 percent of his XPA. He also came up big in the postseason, including a Super Bowl performance where he was credited with 10 points.
He struggled a bit as a sophomore, as he made only 24 of his 34 field goal attempts. He had a particularly short leash to begin this year. In the season opener, he made only one of his three field goal attempts, with one of his misses being from only 27 yards out. Two days after that performance, the 49ers moved on.
Moody will now look to continue his career with his third squad of the 2025 campaign. Gay missed six of his 19 attempts before getting cut, and the team will surely be hoping for a better performance from their newest acquisition.
Ben Levine contributed to this post.
Bears Open CB Jaylon Johnson’s Practice Window
It was learned yesterday the Bears expect to have both Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon back in the fold at some point late in the year. One member of that tandem has taken a significant step toward returning. 
Johnson’s practice window was opened on Friday, per a team announcement. The Bears thus have 21 days to activate him from injured reserve. Today’s update points to a return taking place in the near future regarding the team’s top cornerback.
Core muscle surgery threatened to end Johnson’s season after just one game played. At the time the procedure took place (late September), however, it became clear the team was hopeful about Johnson being able to suit up during the latter stages of the campaign. Barring any setbacks over the coming days, that will indeed take place. Approaching full strength in the secondary will be critical for Chicago’s playoff push.
The Bears have been without Johnson and Gordon for much of the year. In spite of that, they have managed a 6-3 record and in doing so put themselves in strong contention for a postseason berth. Getting both back would represent a major boost, but Johnson in particular managing to return would aid Chicago’s perimeter defense on the back end. The two-time Pro Bowler will no doubt be handled with caution upon returning to practice considering he has dealt with two separate groin issues in 2025.
Johnson, 26, has operated as a full-time starter throughout his six-year Bears career. The former second-rounder received the franchise tag last offseason before agreeing to a four-year, $19MM deal. Managing to remain healthy once he return to action will be imperative not only for the Bears in the immediate term but also for Johnson’s ability to meet the expectations associated with his big-ticket contract.
Gordon remains sidelined by groin and calf injuries at this point, and he has played just two games in 2025. His ongoing recovery progress will be interesting to track, but in any case Johnson is on his way back to the active roster.
Bears Expect CBs Jaylon Johnson, Kyler Gordon Back This Year
The Bears have gotten off to a 6-3 start despite the long-term absences of standout cornerbacks Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon. Johnson played in one game before undergoing core muscle surgery in late September. Gordon appeared in two contests before groin and calf injuries sidelined him. Both defenders are on IR, but head coach Ben Johnson is confident they’ll return this season.
“We should be able to get them back at some point at the end of the season here,” he said (via Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times). “To be determined on when the clocks start ticking here.”
A groin injury shelved Jaylon Johnson for a large portion of training camp and kept him out of the Bears’ season-opening loss to the Vikings. Johnson made his season debut in a Week 2 loss to the Lions, but he had to leave early with a new groin injury that required surgery.
A 2025 return was initially in doubt, though it now appears Johnson will have a chance to factor in as the Bears attempt to snap a four-year playoff drought. The two-time Pro Bowler is “hopeful” he’ll return to practice soon.
Gordon missed the first four weeks of the season with a hamstring injury. The slot specialist debuted in Week 6 and wound up going on IR after Week 7. He’ll miss his fourth straight game this Sunday against the Vikings. Gordon will be eligible to come back in Week 12, but the Bears haven’t opened his 21-day practice window yet. There’s no word on when that could happen.
Shortly after placing Gordon on IR, Chicago signed safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson on Oct. 29. Gardner-Johnson has held his own in two games since then while filling in for Gordon at nickel corner. The 27-year-old has already totaled 15 tackles, three sacks, and a forced fumble. He played 72 of 73 defensive snaps during a nine-tackle, two-sack showing in a win over the Giants last Sunday.
While Gardner-Johnson has been a welcome addition for the Bears, their defense still ranks just 26th against the pass and 28th in points per game allowed. Looking to further upgrade the Bears’ secondary before the Nov. 4 trade deadline, general manager Ryan Poles pursued Saints cornerback Alontae Taylor.
Acquiring Taylor would have reunited him with Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen, previously the Saints’ head coach, but a deal didn’t materialize. The Bears are now left to hope that Jaylon Johnson and/or Gordon will return down the stretch to bolster their defensive backfield and boost their playoff chances.
Bears Pursued CB Alontae Taylor Trade
Shortly before the trade deadline, the Bears were mentioned as a team to watch. A blockbuster deal was not expected, and indeed the team’s only move was the acquisition of Browns pass rusher Joe Tryon-Shoyinka. 
During his post-deadline media availability, general manager Ryan Poles spoke further about his actions on the trade front. He noted (via Adam Jahns of CHGO Sports) calls were made to a number of other teams regarding additions along the edge. Several high-profile options in that regard were mentioned as candidates to be dealt, and a trio of players (Keion White, Dre’Mont Jones and, most notably, Jaelan Phillips) wound up changing teams.
Poles said conversations took place with a wide array of potential sellers, adding some of the prices seen in the league’s blockbuster deals were “stunning” in his view. In the end, it comes as little surprise Chicago was not among the suitors which made a massive move. Poles, head coach Ben Johnson and defensive coordinator Dennis Allen “kept the big picture in mind” when evaluating trades. The Bears are currently 5-3 on the year, but that assures them of little in terms of playoff positioning given the state of the NFC North.
As such, a more expensive acquisition like Phillips – who was dealt for a third-round pick – or Trey Hendrickson – who was available for a second-rounder – was not pursued at the deadline. Chicago will move forward with only Tryon-Shoyinka in place as a new depth option. The Bears did, on the other hand, work toward a notable move elsewhere on defense.
Chicago was “deep in talks” with the Saints about a trade for Alontae Taylor, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports. The fourth-year cornerback was also a target of the Colts prior to their Sauce Gardner blockbuster. The Bears would have represented a logical landing spot for Taylor. He and Allen worked together during the latter’s time as New Orleans’ head coach. Taylor, 26, would have provided the Bears with a welcomed starting option in the secondary during a year in which cornerback injuries have been an issue.
A trade on that front would have been a rental since Taylor’s rookie contract will expire at the end of the campaign. A lucrative new pact is likely in store in his case this spring, and the Saints’ decision to retain him means an extended stay in New Orleans could be worked out. Failing that, the Bears could be among the teams showing interest on the open market given their pursuit of a trade acquisition.
In the meantime, Chicago will look for other moves to provide depth in the secondary. The Bears are one of several teams scheduled to host Asante Samuel Jr., who recently received full medical clearance. With roughly $6.64MM in cap space, a modest free agent pact would be feasible for Chicago if the team manages to work out a deal with Samuel or another corner currently available.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/8/25
Here are Saturday’s taxi squad moves around the NFL:
Chicago Bears
- Signed: LB Carl Jones Jr.
- Released: WR Miles Boykin
Houston Texans
- Signed: RB Jawhar Jordan
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: TE Tanner Conner
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: DT Ta’Quon Graham
- Released: DE Antwaun Powell-Ryland
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: OLB DeMarvin Leal
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: T Logan Brown
- Released: WR Mac Dalena