Todd Johnson

For the North Carolina politician, see Todd Johnson (politician). For the science fiction writer, see Todd McCaffrey.

Todd Johnson

Johnson (32) against the Packers
No. 32, 35
Position:	Safety
Personal information
Born:	(1978-12-18) December 18, 1978 (age 45) Sarasota, Florida, U.S.
Height:	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight:	202 lb (92 kg)
Career information
High school:	Riverview (Sarasota, Florida)
College:	Florida
NFL draft:	2003  / round: 4 / pick: 100
Career history
Chicago Bears (2003–2006) St. Louis Rams (2007–2008) Buffalo Bills (2009)
Career highlights and awards
2× First-team All-SEC (2000, 2001) Second-team All-SEC (2002)
Career NFL statistics
Total tackles: 196 Sacks: 1.0 Forced fumbles: 2 Fumble recoveries: 2 Pass deflections: 5
Player stats at PFR

Todd Edward Johnson (born December 18, 1978) is an American former college and professional football player who was a safety in the National Football League (NFL) for seven seasons during the 2000s. Johnson played college football for the University of Florida, and thereafter, he played professionally for the Chicago Bears, St. Louis Rams, and Buffalo Bills.

Early life

Johnson was born in Sarasota, Florida in 1978. ^[1] He attended Riverview High School in Sarasota, ^[2] where he was a standout defensive back for the Riverview Rams high school football team. ^[3] Johnson was an all-state selection and a SuperPrep All-American as a senior, and set the school record for the 110-yard intermediate hurdles in track & field. ^[4]

College career

Johnson accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where he played for coach Steve Spurrier and coach Ron Zook's Florida Gators football teams from 1998 to 2002. ^[5] The Gators coaching staff decided to redshirt him as a true freshman in 1998, and he spent the season practicing with the scout team; subsequently, Johnson became a four-year letterman and started in thirty-three out of forty-nine games in which he played. ^[4] As a redshirt freshman in 1999, he had twenty-four tackles, four passes defensed, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. ^[4] During his sophomore season in 2000, he started all thirteen games, led the team with a career-high 102 tackles, and had five interceptions, three passes defensed, one forced fumble, and four fumble recoveries, including one returned seventy-six yards for a touchdown, and received first-team All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) honors. ^{[4] [5]} Johnson started all eleven games as junior in 2001, tallying seventy-two tackles, three passes defensed, and two interceptions and again received first-team All-SEC honors. ^{[4] [5]} As a senior team captain in 2002, he started all thirteen games, and compiled eighty-eight tackles and two interceptions and was a second-team All-SEC selection. ^{[4] [5]} Johnson finished his Gator career with a total of 284 tackles and nine interceptions. ^[4]

Johnson graduated from the University of Florida with a bachelor's degree in applied physiology and kinesiology in 2009.

Professional career

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	Bench press
6 ft 0+7⁄8 in (1.85 m)	206 lb (93 kg)	30+1⁄4 in (0.77 m)	9 in (0.23 m)	4.60 s	1.57 s	2.64 s	4.19 s	7.01 s	33+1⁄2 in (0.85 m)	9 ft 9 in (2.97 m)	19 reps
Arm and hand spans from Pro Day, all other values from NFL Combine. [6]

Chicago Bears

Johnson was selected by the Chicago Bears in the fourth round (100th pick overall) in the 2003 NFL draft. ^[7] He played for the Bears for four seasons from 2003 to 2006. ^[8] He did not appear in any regular season games in 2003, ^[8] after suffering a broken jaw in a preseason game. He returned in 2004, playing in sixteen games including ten starts, and finished the season with seventy-five tackles. ^[1] Johnson was Mike Brown's immediate backup during his time with the Bears, and saw extended playing time following Brown's season-ending injury in 2004. The following year, 2005, Johnson saw action in fourteen games, totaling thirty-five tackles. ^[1] Johnson made thirty-two tackles during 2006, ^[1] and was released following the season.

St. Louis Rams

Johnson signed a four-year $4 million contract to play with the St. Louis Rams on March 12, 2007. In his first season with the Rams, he finished the campaign with 29 tackles. In 2008 Johnson made 23 tackles in a backup safety role. He was waived by the Rams on September 5, 2009.

Buffalo Bills

On October 13, 2009, Johnson signed a one-year free agent contract with the Buffalo Bills. Johnson was placed on injured reserve on January 2, 2010, due to a hamstring injury.

NFL career statistics

Legend
Bold	Career high

Regular season

Year	Team	Games		Tackles					Interceptions					Fumbles
		GP	GS	Cmb	Solo	Ast	Sck	TFL	Int	Yds	TD	Lng	PD	FF	FR	Yds	TD
2004	CHI	16	10	75	63	12	0.0	1	0	0	0	0	2	0	1	0	0
2005	CHI	14	2	37	29	8	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2006	CHI	12	6	33	26	7	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	3	1	0	0	0
2007	STL	16	1	22	19	3	1.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2008	STL	14	3	24	20	4	0.0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
2009	BUF	8	0	5	3	2	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0
		80	22	196	160	36	1.0	2	0	0	0	0	5	2	2	0	0

Playoffs

Year	Team	Games		Tackles					Interceptions					Fumbles
		GP	GS	Cmb	Solo	Ast	Sck	TFL	Int	Yds	TD	Lng	PD	FF	FR	Yds	TD
2005	CHI	1	0	5	5	0	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2006	CHI	3	0	4	2	2	0.0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
		4	0	9	7	2	0.0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Coaching career

Johnson became the head football coach of his alma mater, Riverview High School, in 2011. ^[9] He has also been a fill-in substitute teacher since 2012.

See also

• American football portal
• Biography portal
• College football portal

• Florida Gators football, 1990–99
• List of Buffalo Bills players
• List of Chicago Bears players
• List of Florida Gators in the NFL draft
• List of St. Louis Rams players
• List of University of Florida alumni

References

1. Pro-Football-Reference.com, Players, Todd Johnson. Retrieved October 9, 2010.
2. databaseFootball.com, Players, Todd Johnson. Retrieved October 9, 2010.
3. GatorZone.com, Football History, 2002 Roster, Todd Johnson Archived March 5, 2012, at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved October 9, 2010.
4. GatorZone.com, Football History, 2002 Roster, Todd Johnson Archived March 5, 2012, at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved October 9, 2010.
5. 2011 Florida Gators Football Media Guide Archived April 2, 2012, at the Wayback Machine , University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, p. 97, 99, 125, 153–154, 182 (2011). Retrieved August 29, 2011.
6. "Todd Johnson, DS #3 FS, Florida". DraftScout.com. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
7. "2003 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
8. National Football League, Historical Players, Todd Johnson. Retrieved October 9, 2010.
9. Scott Dennis, "Todd Johnson named new Riverview football coach ^{[ permanent dead link ]}," WWSB ABC-7 News (April 6, 2011). Retrieved January 15, 2012.

Bibliography

• Carlson, Norm, University of Florida Football Vault: The History of the Florida Gators, Whitman Publishing, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia (2007). ISBN   0-7948-2298-3.
• Golenbock, Peter, Go Gators! An Oral History of Florida's Pursuit of Gridiron Glory, Legends Publishing, LLC, St. Petersburg, Florida (2002). ISBN   0-9650782-1-3.
• Hairston, Jack, Tales from the Gator Swamp: A Collection of the Greatest Gator Stories Ever Told, Sports Publishing, LLC, Champaign, Illinois (2002). ISBN   1-58261-514-4.