Recently released by the Tennessee Titans, Chris Johnson is now a free agent drawing a lot of buzz. Known as CJ2K, he is one of an elite group of seven players who have rushed for over 2000 yards in a season.
Johnson accomplished this feet in 2009 and has not looked like racking up those numbers since.
Johnson is an electrifying runner whose open field speed is unmatched in the NFL. The current record holder for fastest 40 yard dash at the NFL combine is a home run threat whenever he gets the ball.
Through six NFL seasons he has rushed for 7965 yards with a 4.5 yard per rush average and 50 touchdowns. At 5’11 and 203 pounds, Johnson is considered a little light at the position, but his running style has kept him healthy.
Johnson set a high benchmark in 2009 and expectations for him have been high ever since. With fans and coaches looking for him to repeat this milestone, his production has been a disappointment. Fairly or not, when you put yourself in the conversation as the best running back in the NFL, the expectations do sky rocket.
What helps promote this stigma is his boom-or-bust running style – he is an elusive back rather than a bulldozer, he gets stuffed at the line more often than other running backs. Johnson more often than not looks to bounce to the outside and burn yards around the corner of a defence rather than bullock through the middle.
This is what makes Johnson’s viability as a bell cow running back a question mark, not being able to gain those hard yards up the middle when the outside is cut off.
What is undervalued about Johnson is his consistency and productivity through his six seasons in the NFL. Never failing to reach 1000 yards in a season, Johnson has shown a rare ability to stay healthy and carry load for an offense. Averaging 290 carries per season, he can be the centrepiece of an offense and produce on a consistent basis.
Teams that are interested in Johnson while he is on the free agent market will be getting a productive running back entering the latter stages of his career. At 28-years-old, Johnson is still young enough to carry the load for a team but may be starting to feel the past six seasons’ worth of battering.
Having his yardage marks decline over the past few seasons are probably more to do with the lack of quarterback talent in Tennessee and facing a stacked box more often than not. Teams shouldn’t expect Johnson to put up close to 2009 numbers, but anything from 900-1300 yards is a reasonable expectation.
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