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Kevin Johnson (cornerback)

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Kevin Johnson
refer to caption
Johnson with the Browns in 2020
No. 30, 29, 28
Position:Cornerback
Personal information
Born: (1992-08-05) August 5, 1992 (age 32)
Clarksville, Maryland, U.S.
Height:6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight:185 lb (84 kg)
Career information
High school:Clarksville (MD) River Hill
College:Wake Forest (2010–2014)
NFL draft:2015 / round: 1 / pick: 16
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career NFL statistics
Total tackles:199
Sacks:1.5
Forced fumbles:1
Fumble recoveries:2
Pass deflections:22
Interceptions:1
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Kevin Johnson (born August 5, 1992) is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback for six seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Wake Forest Demon Deacons and was selected by the Houston Texans in the first round of the 2015 NFL draft.

Early life

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Johnson attended River Hill High School in Clarksville, Maryland, where he played both cornerback and running back.

Considered a three-star recruit by ESPN.com, Johnson was listed as the No. 45 cornerback in the nation in 2010.[1] He committed to Wake Forest University to play college football.[2]

College career

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Johnson attended Wake Forest from 2010 to 2014. As a true freshman, he played in 11 games with five starts. In 2011, he redshirted after being ruled academically ineligible. He returned in 2012 as a starter and remained as the starter throughout his senior season.[3][4] Johnson finished his career with 189 tackles and seven interceptions.[5]

Professional career

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Pre-draft

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Coming out of college, analysts projected Johnson to be a first round draft choice. He was ranked the second best cornerback out of the 212 available in the 2015 NFL draft by NFLDraftScout.com.[6] Johnson attended the NFL Combine and completed all the drills and workouts but chose not to do the bench press. At Wake Forest's Pro Day, he only performed positional drills after being satisfied with his combine performance. Representatives and scouts from 22 NFL teams attended his pro day, including defensive back coaches from the Pittsburgh Steelers, Minnesota Vikings, Philadelphia Eagles, and Tennessee Titans.[7] He also attended private workouts and visits with multiple teams, including the Dallas Cowboys and Baltimore Ravens.[8]

External videos
video icon Johnson's NFL Combine workout
video icon Kevin Johnson's 40-yard dash
Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump
6 ft 0+1⁄4 in
(1.84 m) 		188 lb
(85 kg) 		31 in
(0.79 m) 		8+3⁄8 in
(0.21 m)		 4.52 s 1.59 s 2.63 s 3.89 s 6.79 s 41.5 in
(1.05 m)		 10 ft 10 in
(3.30 m)
All values from NFL Combine[9][10]

Houston Texans

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2015

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The Houston Texans selected Johnson in the first round (16th overall) of the 2015 NFL Draft.[11] He was the second cornerback selected in 2014, behind Michigan State's Trae Waynes (11th overall).[12] On May 8, 2015, the Texans signed Johnson to a fully guaranteed four-year, $10.04 million contract with a signing bonus of $5.50 million.[13]

External videos
video icon Texans select Johnson 16th overall

Throughout training camp, he competed against A. J. Bouye for the job as the third cornerback on the depth chart.[8] Head coach Bill O'Brien named Johnson the third cornerback on the Texans' depth chart, behind veterans Johnathan Joseph and Kareem Jackson.[14][15]

He made his professional debut in the Texans' season opener against the Kansas City Chiefs and recorded two solo tackles in the 27–20 loss. On October 4, 2015, he made a season-high five solo tackles in his first career start in a 48–21 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. The next game, Johnson had his second consecutive start and made five combined tackles in a 27–20 loss to the Indianapolis Colts. In Week 8, Johnson had one of the best games of his rookie year when he recorded a season-high six combined tackles and a pass deflection, and intercepted Tennessee Titans quarterback Zach Mettenberger for his first career interception. He returned the interception for 22 yards and helped the Texans defeat the Titans, 20–6. Johnson finished his rookie season with a total of 54 combined tackles, nine pass deflections, and an interception while playing in all 16 games and starting ten.[16]

2016

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The following season, Johnson returned as the Texans' third cornerback and made two solo tackles in their season-opening victory over the Chicago Bears. The following week, he made four solo tackles in a 19–12 victory over the Chiefs. On October 2, 2016, he made his first start of the season and racked up two solo tackles during the Texans' 27–20 win over the Titans. On October 16, 2016, Johnson recorded a career-high nine solo tackles, one assisted tackle, and a pass deflection in the Texans' 26–23 defeat of the Colts. He broke his foot during the game and was placed on injured-reserve on October 22, 2016.[17] In his absence, Bouye emerged as a sufficient replacement.

Johnson finished his second season with 25 combined tackles and three pass deflections in six games and three starts.[16]

2017

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Johnson entered training camp competing with Jackson for the job as the starting cornerback after Bouye signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars.

He started the Texans' season-opener against the Jaguars and recorded five combined tackles during their 29–7 loss. The following week, he recorded four combined tackles in a 13–9 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals. He left during the third quarter after suffering a sprain to his MCL and was estimated to miss the next four-six weeks.[18] On October 29, 2017, he played in his first game since returning from his MCL injury and recorded five combined tackles and deflected a pass during a 41–38 loss to the Seattle Seahawks. Jackson earned Johnson's starting cornerback job during his absence and remained the starter after his return.[19] He played in 12 games overall in 2017, starting four, recording 45 tackles and two pass deflections.

2018

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On April 30, 2018, the Texans picked up the fifth-year option on Johnson's contract.[20] In Week 1 against the New England Patriots, Johnson suffered a concussion and was placed on injured reserve on September 12, 2018.[21]

On March 5, 2019, Johnson was released by the Texans.[22]

Buffalo Bills

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On March 11, 2019, the Buffalo Bills signed Johnson to a one-year deal.[23] He played in 16 games with one start, recording 36 tackles, five passes defensed, and one sack.

Cleveland Browns

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On April 4, 2020, Johnson signed a one-year contract with the Cleveland Browns.[24] He was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the team on January 2, 2021,[25] and activated on January 13.[26]

Tennessee Titans

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Johnson signed with the Titans on March 22, 2021.[27] He announced his retirement on June 4, 2021.[28]

NFL career statistics

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Legend
Bold Career high

Regular season

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Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
GP GS Cmb Solo Ast Sck TFL Int Yds TD Lng PD FF FR Yds TD
2015 HOU 16 10 54 48 6 0.0 3 1 22 0 22 9 0 0 0 0
2016 HOU 6 3 25 22 3 0.0 1 0 0 0 0 3 0 1 53 0
2017 HOU 12 4 45 35 10 0.0 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0
2018 HOU 1 1 4 1 3 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2019 BUF 16 1 36 25 11 1.0 1 0 0 0 0 5 0 0 0 0
2020 CLE 13 6 35 22 13 0.5 0 0 0 0 0 3 1 1 0 0
64 25 199 153 46 1.5 6 1 22 0 22 22 1 2 53 0

Playoffs

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Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
GP GS Cmb Solo Ast Sck TFL Int Yds TD Lng PD FF FR Yds TD
2015 HOU 1 1 3 2 1 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2019 BUF 1 1 9 7 2 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2020 CLE 1 1 5 5 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 3 17 14 3 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Personal life

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Johnson is childhood friends with former NFL wide receiver Michael Campanaro. They attended high school and college together.

References

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  1. ^ "Kevin Johnson - Football Recruiting - Player Profiles - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
  2. ^ Bracken, Matt (August 7, 2007). "What to expect from Terrence Jennings". Baltimore Sun. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
  3. ^ Collins, Dan (October 17, 2013). "Deacons' Johnson learned from Campanaro, worked to improve". Winston-Salem Journal. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
  4. ^ Wake Forest's secondary is second to none
  5. ^ Shorr-Parks, Eliot (January 21, 2015). "NFL Mock Draft: Eagles take Wake Forest CB Kevin Johnson; Oregon's Marcus Mariota drops to No. 18". NJ.com. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
  6. ^ "Kevin Johnson, DS #2 CB, Wake Forest: 2015 NFL Draft". nfldraftscout.com. Retrieved December 16, 2016.
  7. ^ Gil Brandt (March 2, 2015). "Kevin Johnson's Pro Day attracts DB coaches from 4 NFL teams". NFL.com. Retrieved December 16, 2016.
  8. ^ a b Wilson, Aaron (August 12, 2015). "Texans getting their money's worth at nickel back". HoustonChronicle.com. Retrieved April 5, 2018.
  9. ^ "Kevin Johnson Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved December 16, 2016.
  10. ^ "Kevin Johnson College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved October 12, 2024.
  11. ^ "2015 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  12. ^ Sidhu, Deepi (April 30, 2015). "Texans select Wake Forest CB Kevin Johnson at #16". HoustonTexans.com. Retrieved May 1, 2015.
  13. ^ "Kevin Johnson (River Hill) signs four-year, $10.04 million contract, source says". Sun-Sentinel.com. Retrieved December 16, 2016.
  14. ^ "Texans v. Chiefs: New (Unofficial) Houston Texans Depth Chart". battleredblog.com. September 12, 2015. Retrieved April 5, 2018.[permanent dead link]
  15. ^ Wexler, Adam (April 2, 2015). "Wexler: Texans 53-man roster prediction". click2houston.com. Retrieved April 5, 2018.
  16. ^ a b "NFL Player Profile: Kevin Johnson". NFL.com. Retrieved December 16, 2016.
  17. ^ "Texans place CB Kevin Johnson on reserve/injured". HoustonTexans.com. October 22, 2016.
  18. ^ Barshop, Sarah (September 15, 2017). "Source: Texans CB Kevin Johnson expected to miss 4-6 weeks due to sprained MCL". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 31, 2024.
  19. ^ "NFL Player stats: Kevin Johnson". NFL.com. Retrieved November 9, 2017.
  20. ^ Alper, Josh (April 30, 2018). "Texans pick up Kevin Johnson's option for 2019". ProFootballTalk.NBCSports.com.
  21. ^ "TRANSACTIONS: Texans place Henderson, Johnson on reserve/injured list". HoustonTexans.com. September 12, 2018.
  22. ^ Smith, Michael David (March 5, 2019). "Texans cut Kevin Johnson". Pro Football Talk. NBC Sports.
  23. ^ Brown, Chris (March 12, 2019). "Bills add free agent cornerback Kevin Johnson". BuffaloBills.com.
  24. ^ Gribble, Andrew (April 4, 2020). "CB Kevin Johnson gives Browns another veteran option at defensive back". ClevelandBrowns.com.
  25. ^ "Browns place CB Kevin Johnson on COVID-19 list". ClevelandBrowns.com. January 2, 2021. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  26. ^ "Browns activate CBs Denzel Ward, Kevin Johnson". ClevelandBrowns.com. January 13, 2021. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  27. ^ Wyatt, Jim (March 22, 2021). "Titans Reach Deal With Veteran CB Kevin Johnson". TennesseeTitans.com. Retrieved March 22, 2021.
  28. ^ Wyatt, Jim (June 4, 2021). "Titans Place Veteran CB Kevin Johnson on Reserve/Retired List". TennesseeTitans.com. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
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