Bigger cornerback deals have Jaylon Johnson saying he'd like more

"Really just seeing a lot of the other corners getting paid, I almost feel like we might have another discussion coming up here soon," Johnson told Rollins. "The market is moving. The market is moving.

"And so I mean as long as I keep being myself, keep playing at a high level, there definitely is going to have to be some more conversations coming up soon to really keep it long term. I'm looking forward to that but definitely happy for what's going on right now in the NFL and the corner world. So I mean I'm looking forward to this season and continuing to prove myself and that's what it's about, really, is putting good tape out there. I mean this whole offseason has been geared toward that.”

There have been nine contracts for cornerbacks come in higher than what Johnson received since he signed his, according to Spotrac.com.

It has become more common for players with multiple years left to ask for extensions and raises. Edge rusher Myles Garrett was the premier example of this as he had two years left and got a $160 million extension after he officially asked to be traded.

There’s a big difference here, however. Johnson isn’t at the top of the market or the cornerback rankings.

Although Johnson made the Pro Bowl games the last two years, he was All-Pro second team in 2023 but not last year. He was not on list voted on by Associated Press Pro Football Writers with the top five cornerbacks. The list, released Monday, had Patrick Surtain II No. 1, Gardner No. 2, Derek Stingley third, Trent McDuffie fourth and Cooper DeJean No. 5.

Johnson was 13th on Pro Football Focus’ grades for the top 116 cornerbacks, and 19th on a list of all the 222 cornerbacks they graded last year.

In 2023, Johnson was No. 1 on PFF’s list of the top 127 cornerbacks.

He’s coming off a season when he had a career-worst 66.1 completion rate allowed when targeted (37 of 56) according to Stathead/Pro Football Reference.  His passer rating against when targeted went from a career-best 50.9 in 2023 to 92.6  last year, his second-best rating against.

Johnson had injuries as a problem in past years but last season played a full schedule for the first time. He has already set 10 takeaways and seven interceptions as goals for this year. He has seven interceptions for his career.

If Johnson hits any of those targets he has put out there, perhaps he does have a reason for approaching Poles, but anything like that now seems too premature.