Jaylon Johnson had a chance to stop Rhamondre Stevenson just before halftime, but never made the much-needed tackle. The Patriots RB ran free for a 48-yard touchdown, cutting the Chicago Bears’ lead to 20-14. The play drew a sharp reaction from former Chicago cornerback Jerry Azumah.

“If you don’t want to be out there playing tackle football then get the hell off the field!!!” Azumah posted on X.

Chicago had everything under control. The Bears led the Patriots 20-7 with just 14 seconds left in the first half. But New England found an opportunity to derail the Bears a little.

Right before time ran out for the second quarter, QB Drake Maye found Rhamondre Stevenson on a 1st-and-10 from Chicago’s 48. It was bold for Pats fans to perhaps hope for a touchdown, but boy, were they rewarded.

Ball in hand, Stevenson charged through the Bears defense. He easily got past a weak tackle made by defensive back Jaylon Johnson. In the footage, Johnson can also be seen trying to get after him in vain, even though Stevenson was out of his reach at that time.

What should have been an easy lead to maintain became difficult, with the Pats catching up to the Bears 20-14 at halftime.

Johnson’s coverage hasn’t helped his case. Heading into Week 7, quarterbacks were completing 78.6 percent of their passes against him, with a 130.7 passer rating, according to Sports Illustrated’s Mike Moraitis. If that keeps up, his future in Chicago looks shaky. He even admitted before the season that this was a contract year.

“This is definitely a contract year. We all know with the cap hit and all that stuff. It’s definitely a contract year for me, so at the end of the day, whether that’s here or somewhere else, I gotta put it on tape that I am still a top guy,” Johnson said.

Moments like this one work against that goal, and the reaction came fast. Jeremy Werner of Illini Inquirer put it bluntly.

“Jaylon Johnson needs to be benched,” Werner said.

David Haugh of Haugh & Payton went a step further and pointed to the Bears coaches.

“If I’m Dennis Allen and/or Ben Johnson, and Tyrique Stevenson is healthy enough to play every snap of the second half, I’d bench Jaylon Johnson,” Haugh wrote. “Lacking effort and execution, in that order, and the standard has to be higher.”

Emmanuel Acho never named Johnson, but nobody had to guess who he meant.

“There’s one DB for the Chicago Bears who refuses to tackle… I mean, absolutely refuses to!” Acho posted.

Former defender Jason McCourty also weighed in, and his take sounded personal.

“As a defender, that last play by Chicago broke my heart lol. No way you let them score on that play,” he wrote on X.

That reaction says a lot. Johnson has a long way to go to turn this around, and the next few games will show whether he can.