Derrick Johnson


Derrick O'Hara Johnson is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League. He played college football for the Texas Longhorns, twice earning consensus All-American honors. Johnson was selected by the Kansas City Chiefs in the first round of the 2005 NFL draft with the 15th overall pick. In his 13 seasons with the Chiefs, Johnson made four Pro Bowls. He also played six games for the Oakland Raiders in 2018.

Early life

Johnson was born in Waco, Texas. He attended Waco High School, where he was a three-sport star in football, track and basketball. In football, Johnson played as a linebacker, registering 170 tackles, 21.0 stops for loss, six quarterback sacks, five forced fumbles, and two interceptions, including one returned for a touchdown as a senior. He produced a career-high 30 tackles and four forced fumbles in a single game. Johnson earned Parade magazine high school All-America and first-team All-Texas Class 5A honors following both his junior and senior seasons, and played in the first-ever U.S. Army All-American Bowl on December 30, 2000.
As a standout track & field athlete, Johnson was a state-qualifier in the 100-meters and the triple jump. He recorded a 10.5-second 100-meter dash, while also clearing over 48 ft in the triple jump. At the District 13-5A Championships, Johnson ran a leg on the Waco 4 × 100 m relay squad, helping them earn a fourth-place finish.

College career

Johnson enrolled in The University of Texas at Austin, and played for coach Mack Brown's Texas Longhorns football team from 2001 to 2004 and became one of the most dominant linebackers in Longhorns history. Johnson was a first-team All-Big 12 selection in 2002, 2003, and 2004, a consensus first-team All-American in 2003, and unanimous first-team All-American in 2004. Following his senior season, Johnson was also recognized as the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, and received the Dick Butkus Award and Bronko Nagurski Trophy. The Texas Longhorns finished 11–1, and narrowly defeated the Michigan Wolverines 38–37 in the 2005 Rose Bowl.

College statistics

Career awards and records

  • 2003 Consensus First-team All-American
  • 2004 Consensus First-team All-American
  • 2004 Dick Butkus Award
  • 2004 Bronko Nagurski Trophy

    Professional career

Pre-draft

Johnson entered the 2005 NFL Draft as a highly touted prospect and attended the NFL Scouting Combine and completed all of the combine drills. On March 23, 2005, he attended Texas' pro day, but opted to stand on his combine numbers and only performed positional drills. He was projected to be a first round pick by NFL draft experts and scouts. He was ranked as the top outside linebacker prospect in the draft by DraftScout.com and DraftCountdown.com.

Kansas City Chiefs

2005

The Kansas City Chiefs selected Johnson in the first round of the 2005 NFL draft. Johnson was the fourth linebacker drafted in 2005.
On July 31, 2005, the Chiefs signed Johnson to a five-year, $10.4 million contract with $7.03 million guaranteed.
Johnson entered training camp slated as a starting outside linebacker. Head coach Dick Vermeil officially named him the left outside linebacker to start the regular season, along with Kendrell Bell and middle linebacker Kawika Mitchell.
Johnson made his professional regular season debut and first career start in the season-opener against the New York Jets and recorded nine combined tackles, forced a fumble, and made his first career sack on quarterback Chad Pennington during the 27–7 victory. Three weeks later, Johnson collected a season-high 10 solo tackles in a 37–31 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
Johnson started all 16 games of his rookie season and made 95 combined tackles, five pass deflections, two forced fumbles, and two sacks. He was subsequently awarded the Mack Lee Hill Award as their rookie of the year. The Chiefs finished second in the AFC West with a 10–6 record, but did not qualify for the playoffs.

2006

On January 1, 2006, Chiefs head coach Dick Vermeil announced his retirement after five seasons with the team. New head coach Herm Edwards chose to retain defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham and the base 4-3 defense. He also retained starting linebackers Johnson, Bell, and Mitchell to begin the season.
On October 29, 2006, Johnson made five combined tackles and two sacks on quarterback Matt Hasselbeck in the 30–27 victory over the Seattle Seahawks. Johnson missed two consecutive games due to a sprained ankle. He aggravated his injury and was also inactive for the Week 13 matchup against the Cleveland Browns. Three weeks later, Johnson had a season-high nine solo tackles during a 20–9 road victory over the Oakland Raiders.
Johnson finished his second professional season with 75 combined tackles, 4.5 sacks, and three passes defensed in 13 games and 13 starts.

2007

Head coach Herman Edwards retained Johnson as the starting left outside linebacker to begin the regular season, alongside Donnie Edwards and starting middle linebacker Napoleon Harris.
On September 16, 2007, Johnson recorded seven combined tackles, a season-high two pass deflections, forced a fumble, and sacked quarterback Rex Grossman twice during a 20–10 loss at the Chicago Bears in Week 2. In Week 4, he made three combined tackles, deflected a pass, made a sack, and made his first career interception off a pass by Philip Rivers during a 30–16 victory at the San Diego Chargers. On November 11, 2007, Johnson collected a season-high 11 solo tackles, deflected a pass, forced a fumble, and made an interception in the Chiefs' 27–11 loss to the Denver Broncos in Week 10. He started all 16 games and recorded 94 combined tackles, six pass deflections, four sacks, and three forced fumbles.

2008

Johnson and Donnie Edwards returned as the starting outside linebackers in 2008, along with middle linebacker Pat Thomas. On September 28, 2008, Johnson made six combined tackles, a pass deflection, was credited with half a sack, forced a fumble, and also intercepted a pass by quarterback Jay Cutler during a 33–19 victory against the Denver Broncos. The following week, he collected a season-high nine solo tackles and deflected a pass in the Chiefs' 34–0 loss at the Carolina Panthers. He was inactive for two games after injuring his hamstring the previous week. On December 28, 2008, he collected a season-high 11 combined tackles and a pass deflection in the Chiefs' 16–6 loss at the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 17. Johnson recorded 85 combined tackles, six passes defensed, four forced fumbles, 1.5 sacks, and an interception in 14 games and 14 starts.

2009

On January 23, 2009, the Kansas City Chiefs fired head coach Herman Edwards after they finished with a 2–14 record in 2008 and did not qualify for the playoffs for the third consecutive season.
The Kansas City Chiefs' new head coach, Todd Haley, hired Clancy Pendergast as the new defensive coordinator. Pendergast chose to install a base 3-4 defense instead of the 4-3 defense previously used. On May 20, 2009, Johnson stated during an interview that the change in base defense has prompted the coaches to move him to inside linebacker. Throughout training camp, Johnson competed for a job as a starting inside linebacker against Demorrio Williams, Corey Mays, Monty Beisel, and rookie Jovan Belcher. Head coach Todd Haley named Johnson a backup inside linebacker to start the regular season, behind Demorrio Williams, Corey Mays, Monty Beisel, and Jovan Belcher. Haley did not give an explanation on Johnson's demotion, but Johnson stated he had no previous experience in a base 3–4 defense and had issues with the transition.
He appeared in the Kansas City Chiefs' season-opener at the Baltimore Ravens and recorded three solo tackles, a pass deflection, and returned an interception by quarterback Joe Flacco for a 70-yard gain during a 38–24 loss. He was inactive for the Chiefs' Week 3 loss at the Philadelphia Eagles after injuring his groin the previous week. In Week 11, he collected a season-high seven combined tackles during a 27–24 victory against the Pittsburgh Steelers. On January 3, 2010, Johnson recorded six combined tackles, a season-high four pass deflections, and returned two interceptions for touchdowns during a 44–24 victory at the Denver Broncos in Week 17. He intercepted a pass by quarterback Kyle Orton, intended for wide receiver Brandon Lloyd, and returned it 45-yards for the first touchdown of his career in the third quarter. Johnson returned another interception by Orton, intended for tight end Daniel Graham, for a 60-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter to tie an NFL single game record for most interceptions returned for touchdowns. He finished the 2008 season with 37 combined tackles, five pass deflections, three interceptions, two touchdowns, a sack, and a forced fumble in 15 games and was limited to three starts.

2010

Defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast was not re-signed by the Chiefs after the 2009 season. The Kansas City Chiefs placed a first round tender on Johnson after he became a restricted free agent in 2010. On May 23, 2010, Johnson signed his one-year, $2.52 million contract.
Throughout training camp, Johnson competed to be a starting inside linebacker against Demorrio Williams and Javon Belcher. Defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel named Johnson a starting left inside linebacker to begin the 2010 season, alongside Javon Belcher, and outside linebackers Mike Vrabel and Tamba Hali.
On October 24, 2010, Johnson made six combined tackles, three pass deflections, and returned an interception for a touchdown during a 42–20 win against the Jacksonville Jaguars. He returned an interception thrown by quarterback Todd Bouman, that was intended for tight end Eric Potter, for a 15-yard touchdown in the third quarter. On November 8, 2010, the Kansas City Chiefs signed Johnson to a five-year, $34 million contract that includes $15 million guaranteed. In Week 10, he collected a season-high 12 solo tackles and deflected two passes in the Chiefs' 49–29 loss at the Denver Broncos. On December 19, 2010, Johnson recorded a season-high 13 combined tackles and a season-high four pass deflections during a 27–13 win at the St. Louis Rams in Week 15. Johnson started all 16 games in 2010 and recorded 121 combined tackles, a career-high 16 pass deflections, four forced fumbles, one sack, an interception, and a touchdown.
The Kansas City Chiefs finished first in the AFC West with a 10–6 record and earned a playoff berth. On January 10, 2011, Johnson started in his first career playoff game and seven combined tackles in the Chiefs' 30–7 loss to the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Wildcard Game.