Collin Johnson (born September 23, 1997) is an American professional football wide receiver for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Texas. He is the son of College Football Hall of Fame cornerback Johnnie Johnson and attended high school at Valley Christian in San Jose. As of 2020, Johnson is the tallest wide receiver in the NFL.
| No. 80 – Chicago Bears | |||||||||
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| Position: | Wide receiver | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | September 23, 1997 Los Angeles, California, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 222 lb (101 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Valley Christian (CA) | ||||||||
| College: | Texas (2016–2019) | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2020 / round: 5 / pick: 165 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
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| Roster status: | Active | ||||||||
| Career NFL statistics as of 2023 | |||||||||
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Early years
editAttending Valley Christian in San Jose, Johnson was limited by injury in both his sophomore and senior seasons but still eclipsed 1,100 yards as a senior.[1] By the winter of his sophomore year, Johnson had garnered scholarship offers from USC, Arizona State, Utah, Rutgers, Cal, and TCU, but committed to Texas on April 17, 2014, along with his brother Kirk, a running back who is a year older than Collin.[2]
College career
editJohnson played in every game as a freshman and started one. As a sophomore, he started nine games and completed the season with 54 catches.[1]
Early in his junior season, Johnson hauled in a career-high 191 yards against USC, including 47 on a go-ahead touchdown.[3] After underperforming against Oklahoma, Johnson was replaced atop the depth chart by Dorian Leonard.[4] A year later, Johnson called the benching a learning opportunity and a chance for personal growth.[5]
Heading into his senior year, coach Tom Herman noted that Johnson improved markedly in the offseason.[3] Johnson also landed on the Walter Camp Award, Wuerffel Award, and Biletnikoff Award preseason watchlists.[6]
Johnson's acrobatics and 124 yards against TCU in week four earned him National Player of the Week accolades.[7] After a slight injury to his knee, Johnson missed the Nov 10 game against Texas Tech.[8] In the 2018 Big 12 Championship Game, Johnson set the title game record for receiving yards with 177. The performance came after Johnson was excluded from the All-Big 12 team for 2018.[9] His coaches also lauded him for increased blocking skills throughout the season.[10]
Professional career
edit| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | Bench press | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 5+5⁄8 in (1.97 m) |
222 lb (101 kg) |
31+3⁄4 in (0.81 m) |
9 in (0.23 m) |
17 reps | ||||||||
| All values from NFL Combine[11][12] | ||||||||||||
Jacksonville Jaguars
editJohnson was selected by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the fifth round with the 165th overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft.[13] The Jaguars received the 165th pick used to select Johnson as a result from a trade that sent Dante Fowler to the Los Angeles Rams.[14]
In Week 5 against the Houston Texans, Johnson recorded three catches for 30 yards and his first career touchdown reception during the 30–14 loss.[15] In Week 11 against the Cleveland Browns, Johnson recorded four catches for 96 yards and a touchdown during the 27–25 loss. Jaguars quarterback Mike Glennon threw a 46-yard pass that Johnson ran in for his second touchdown of the year.[16] On January 2, 2021, Johnson was placed on injured reserve.[17]
On August 31, 2021, Johnson was waived by the Jaguars.[18]
New York Giants
editOn September 1, 2021, Johnson was claimed off waivers by the New York Giants.[19] On August 24, 2022, Johnson was placed on injured reserve with a torn achilles.[20] He was released on August 27, 2023.[21]
Chicago Bears
editOn October 10, 2023, Johnson was signed to the practice squad of the Chicago Bears.[22] He was signed to the active roster on January 3, 2024.[23]
Johnson was waived by the Bears on August 27, 2024 and re-signed to the practice squad.[24][25] He was promoted to the active roster on November 20.
Personal life
editJohnson's father Johnnie also played at Texas and played for ten years in the NFL; he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2007. Collin's older brother Kirk was also a football player at Texas (2015–19), and his sister Camille was a member of the track and field team where she threw the javelin (2018–19).[26] On June 26, 2020, Collin proposed to his girlfriend since high school, Sara Machado.[27]
References
edit- ^ a b Craven, Mike; Davis, Brian (August 27, 2018). "The Texas 22: Starting at wide receiver — Collin Johnson". Austin American-Statesman. GateHouse Media. Archived from the original on August 27, 2018. Retrieved December 4, 2018.
- ^ Donohue, Tyler (April 17, 2014). "Brothers Kirk and Collin Johnson Commit to Texas Longhorns". Bleacher Report. Archived from the original on April 20, 2014. Retrieved December 7, 2018.
- ^ a b Moyle, Nick (August 15, 2018). "Texas' Collin Johnson a prototypical WR but isn't one for theatrics". Houston Chronicle. Hearst Communications. Retrieved December 4, 2018.
- ^ Davis, Danny (October 16, 2017). "Following off week against Oklahoma, Collin Johnson replaced atop Texas' depth chart". Austin American-Statesman. GateHouse Media. Archived from the original on December 30, 2018. Retrieved November 26, 2018.
- ^ Davis, Danny (October 23, 2018). "With Cowboys on deck, Collin Johnson discusses what he learned from last year's benching". Austin American-Statesman. GateHouse Media. Archived from the original on October 24, 2018. Retrieved November 26, 2018.
- ^ Estes, Taylor (July 27, 2018). "Collin Johnson lands on watch list for Walter Camp Award". 247Sports.com. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
- ^ Hicks, Phil (September 25, 2018). "Flying High: Texas WR Collin Johnson named The Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award National Player of the Week". Tyler Morning Telegraph. Retrieved December 4, 2018.
- ^ Daeschner, Trenton (November 10, 2018). "Texas WR Collin Johnson, S Brandon Jones ruled out vs. Texas Tech". The Dallas Morning News. A. H. Belo. Archived from the original on November 16, 2018. Retrieved November 26, 2018.
- ^ Daeschner, Trenton (December 1, 2018). "Texas WR Collin Johnson sets a Big 12 title game record for receiving yards". The Dallas Morning News. A. H. Belo. Archived from the original on December 2, 2018. Retrieved December 4, 2018.
- ^ Moyle, Nick (November 8, 2018). "Collin Johnson's father knows best is yet to come for UT receiver". Houston Chronicle. Hearst Communications. Retrieved December 7, 2018.
- ^ "Collin Johnson Combine Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
- ^ "2020 NFL Draft Scout Collin Johnson College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved February 3, 2024.
- ^ Estes, Taylor (April 25, 2020). "Jaguars pick Collin Johnson in fifth round of 2020 NFL Draft". 247 sports. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
- ^ "2020 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
- ^ "Jacksonville Jaguars at Houston Texans - October 11th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
- ^ "Cleveland Browns at Jacksonville Jaguars - November 29th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
- ^ Johnson, James (January 3, 2021). "Jags call on help from practice squad for season finale, place Collin Johnson on IR". USAToday.com. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
- ^ "Roster Moves: Jaguars Reduce Roster to 53". Jaguars.com. August 31, 2021. Archived from the original on September 2, 2021. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
- ^ Eisen, Michael (September 1, 2021). "Giants claim WR Collin Johnson, LB Quincy Roche, LB Justin Hilliard". Giants.com. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
- ^ Eisen, Michael (August 24, 2022). "WR Collin Johnson placed on IR with torn Achilles". Giants.com. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
- ^ Salomone, Dan (August 27, 2023). "Giants make series of transactions ahead of NFL roster deadline". Giants.com. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
- ^ Wiltfong Jr., Lester A. (October 10, 2023). "Chicago Bears sign Collin Johnson to the practice squad". Windy City Gridiron. SB Nation. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
- ^ "Bears' Collin Johnson: Signed to Chicago's roster". CBS Sports. January 3, 2024. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
- ^ Mayer, Larry (August 27, 2024). "Roster Moves: Bears reach 53-man roster limit". ChicagoBears.com. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
- ^ Mayer, Larry (August 28, 2024). "Roster Moves: Bears sign players to practice squad". ChicagoBears.com. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
- ^ Moyle, Nick (August 30, 2018). "Longhorn brothers eager to finally share field together". Houston Chronicle. Hearst Communications. Retrieved December 7, 2018.
- ^ Johnson, James (June 27, 2020). "Watch: Jags rookie Collin Johnson proposes to girlfriend Sara Machado". USA Today. Archived from the original on July 1, 2020. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
External links
edit- Career statistics from NFL.com · ESPN · Yahoo Sports
- Chicago Bears bio
- Texas Longhorns bio