Bills release former Bears CB C.J. Gardner-Johnson

The Bills released former Bears cornerback C.J. Gardner-Johnson on Tuesday after he served a one-game suspension for spitting toward Raiders tight end Brock Bowers.Before then, Gardner-Johnson had started all six games for the Bills.The Bears signed him last year with their defensive backfield depleted by injuries to Kyler Gordon, Jaylon Johnson and others. They chose not to re-sign him this offseason. While this year’s team has witnessed injuries to safety Coby Bryant and cornerback Malik Muhammad — the former is out until at least December and the latter missed Monday’s game — the Bears aren’t squeezed for depth quite as much as last year.Kyler Gordon is the team’s slot cornerback —the place Gardner-Johnson played last year — and is one of its best defenders. Gardner-Johnson played safety in Buffalo, where Pro Football Focus graded him 71st out of 98 safeties.Since 2023, he’s played the Lions, Eagles, Texans, Bears and Bills. He was drafted by the Saints, where he played for current