Todd Johnson wanted to be clear on one point Thursday.
“I realize I can’t be him and I’m not going to try to be him,” he said of replacing injured strong safety Mike Brown. “I’m just going to try to play my game.”
The follow-up question: What would you say is your game?
“We’ll see this next weekend (against San Francisco),” Johnson said with a smile.
Johnson started 10 games after Brown tore his Achilles’ tendon in 2004. He was a virtual rookie at the time, spending the previous season on injured reserve with a broken jaw. The Bears were in their first year of the Lovie Smith-Ron Rivera defense.
“I feel like I played well then,” Johnson said. “It was my first year and I came away with confidence from that.”
Brown is expected to be on the sidelines for some games this season and likely will be more than just a cheerleader. He was more than that for Johnson the last time Johnson filled in for him.
“He has taught me everything from being quiet as a young guy to stepping up and speaking up when it’s your time on the field to be a leader,” Johnson said.
Brown already has been an informal coach for Danieal Manning and gave the rookie safety some things to live NFL life by.
“The main thing [is] to always play hard and when the lights come on, you have a chance to make a dash and make a name for yourself,” Manning said. “But always remember that this is fun.”
Chris Harris, recovering from a quad injury, soon will be competing with Johnson for playing time.
“I’ll be back in the next couple of weeks,” Harris said. “I’ll have to be battling Todd Johnson for a job.”