Second-year cornerback John Franklin III faced amazingly stacked odds when he got to the NFL. Here’s a kid who played at three different colleges in four years. At two different positions, no less. He started out as a quarterback and then was moved to wide receiver. He failed to stand out at either position, yet his size and blazing speed was something teams couldn’t ignore. When he signed with the Chicago Bears last year, they asked him to switch to cornerback.
Franklin agreed. His first year was predictably difficult as he showed all the signs of a player learning a completely foreign position. Still, the Bears saw enough to retain him on their practice squad. Coming into 2019, it felt like this was the ideal time to take another step. Making the final 53-man roster was Franklin’s goal. It would make for quite an accomplishment after several years of frustration in college.
However, his odds at this point don’t look favorable. After a solid start in the preseason opener against Carolina, Franklin was exposed a number of times by the New York Giants last week. In total he’s been targeted nine times, allowing seven catches for 86 yards and a touchdown. Quarterbacks have a 143.5 passer rating when throwing in his direction. That is not something the Bears are looking for.
This hasn’t shaken Franklin’s confidence though. He explained to J.J. Stankevitz of NBC Sports why he feels it’s his destiny to make the roster.
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“I’m not trying to just be okay,” Franklin said. “… I want to be the best that ever played.
…I want to leave a legacy when it’s all said and done,” Franklin said. “Any time somebody says my name, I want them to know that he’s a hard worker, he did it all. I think this is bigger than me. What I do here is more than me. And that’s what it’s all about, leaving a legacy here on this earth playing this game.”
John Franklin III needs more than destiny at this point
As things stand now? Franklin III is on the outside looking in. Though he may be the most physically gifted of the Bears’ reserve corners from a purely athletic standpoint, the team wants players they can trust to come in and at least be serviceable. There’s also the special teams aspect in play. Franklin is not a return man and he hasn’t stood out on coverage units either. That only makes his push for a roster spot even harder.
Kevin Toliver is more experienced and reliable. Rookie Clifton Duck may not be the athlete Franklin is but he’s shown much better instinct and ball skills over the past two weeks. They look like the two favorites to claim the 5th and 6th spots on the cornerback depth chart. There are still two games left though. The young corner has time to change to the status quo. He just needs one good performance to help sway the coaches his way.
