ChicagoBears.com wraps up its "Pro Bowl Postcards" series with cornerback Jaylon Johnson and defensive end Montez Sweat, who recap the NFC's victory at the Pro Bowl Games Championship.
Pro Bowl Postcards: Jaylon Johnson, Montez Sweat | Sunday, Feb. 4
As told to Gabby Hajduk
Jaylon Johnson
I just finished my first Pro Bowl Games and man, it was lit. The NFC got the dub and I'm so glad I was able to make the game-sealing play.
With four seconds left, we had a 64-59 lead, but the AFC had a chance to score on fourth down. C.J. Stroud (Texans quarterback) threw to Keenan Allen (Chargers receiver) in the end zone, but I laid out to tip the ball and secure the win for my guys.
That play was my favorite part of the entire day. Up until that point it was pretty chill. I wasn't really sure what to expect from the game, but the vibes were fun and coming out with the win was a good time.
Playing flag football was cool, but it was definitely different trying to pull a flag. For the most part we were all playing at the same speed, but Tyreek Hill (Dolphins receiver) was definitely the hardest to catch. Tyreek's half speed is a little faster than the rest of us. When he turns it on, it's just a different gear and one of the first plays, he just flew by. No one was warmed up yet, so he could have that one.
I was able to bring my daughter on the sideline and celebrated with my family on the field after the game. This whole week with them was special. It felt like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Every kid dreams of going to the NFL, but bringing your family along to experience these things together is a different feeling. I'm thanking God for that opportunity.
Experiencing this type of big-time environment just made me want to continue the momentum from this season. I want more of these moments. Today made me think about winning, getting to the playoffs, playing in the Super Bowl and being in more special environments like this.
Sharing this experience with Montez was also a fun time. It feels like he's been with the Bears for a while now so playing in our first Pro Bowl together was another opportunity to continue to grow our bond.
I always want him to have confidence that he has an elite player on the backend because I know we have an elite guy up front to rush. I think we are each other's best friends when it comes to doing our jobs, so I want to build that relationship up as much as possible.
To all the Bears fans that helped me get here, thank you for the love and the support this season. It was much needed and it means so much to me and my family.
Montez Sweat
Today was such a fun day. Playing in and winning my first Pro Bowl Games was a great experience, one I will never forget.
I had such a good time sharing this dub with the other NFC guys. Having the opportunity to just hang out and communicate with other players around the league was the best part of this whole week.
The offensive and defensive linemen didn't play in the flag football game, but we all participated in a couple of the skills competitions. My first challenge was Move the Chains and five of us had to move 3,000 pounds of weights off a wall and then pull the 2,000-pound wall across the finish line.
We came up with a strategic plan — put the big guys in the middle and the edge players on the outside so we could all meet in the middle and bring it home. We executed that plan and we won. I was definitely super tired but the adrenaline kicked in as I was moving the weights and I was able to get my job done.
The second competition I did was the Gridiron Gauntlet — a six-person relay race through an obstacle course. My portion was the "Tip Drill" where I had to jump on trampolines to knock footballs through three boards.
That game was actually really fun and was easy for me. I used to play a little basketball back in my day so I guess I just revisited high school for a bit. We came out on top in that skills challenge too, so it was an exciting moment for me and the guys.
Honestly, I think my favorite part of the day was sharing this experience with my son. I brought him out to the bench for a little bit and got to soak in those moments with him. Having him around for things like this is just special, man. I was also able to introduce Shiloh to Penei Sewell (Lions tackle and Noah Sewell's brother) and his son. It was fun to spend time with them too.
I'm just ready to start stacking these Pro Bowls now. I really appreciate all the Bears fans who voted for me and Jaylon. Hopefully we can do this again next year or maybe be at the Super Bowl.
