Bryant Andrew Johnson (born March 7, 1981) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Arizona Cardinals 17th overall in the 2003 NFL draft and also played for the San Francisco 49ers, Detroit Lions, and Houston Texans.[1] He played college football for the Penn State Nittany Lions.

Bryant Johnson
refer to caption
Johnson with the San Francisco 49ers in 2008
No. 83, 80, 82, 89
Position:Wide receiver
Personal information
Born: (1981-03-07) March 7, 1981 (age 43)
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Height:6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight:212 lb (96 kg)
Career information
High school:Baltimore City College
(Baltimore, Maryland)
College:Penn State (1999–2002)
NFL draft:2003 / round: 1 / pick: 17
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Receptions:314
Receiving yards:3,938
Receiving touchdowns:16
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Early life

edit

Johnson attended Baltimore City College high school, excelling at football, basketball, and track. He was selected first-team all-state and the 1998 Baltimore Touchdown Club's offensive player-of-the-year from the Knight's football team, Johnson also anchored a winning relay team at the Penn Relays for the school's track team.[2]

College career

edit

Johnson was a star wide receiver for Penn State, starting his final two years. He was the sixth player in PSU history to catch more than 100 career passes, and finished second all-time with 2,008 career receiving yards.[2]

Johnson earned a Bachelor of Arts in sociology from Penn State University in 2005.

College statistics

edit
Penn State Nittany Lions
Season GP Receiving
Rec Yds Avg TD
1999 12 7 140 20.0 2
2000 11 4 85 21.3 1
2001 11 51 866 17.0 3
2002 13 48 917 19.1 4
Career 47 110 2,008 18.3 10

Professional career

edit
 
Johnson is matched up against St. Louis Rams cornerback Jason Craft during a game on November 16, 2008.

Arizona Cardinals

edit

Johnson played three years predominantly as the Cardinals' third option receiver, playing mainly out of the slot receiver role, due to Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald being higher on the depth chart. His 35 catches in 2003 was the third most receptions for a rookie (his teammate Anquan Boldin had the most receptions for a rookie that year).[2] In his 5-year career with the Cardinals he caught 210 passes for 2675 yards and 9 touchdowns.

Johnson scored the inaugural touchdown at University of Phoenix Stadium, a 5-yard reception from Kurt Warner in the Arizona Cardinals preseason game on August 12, 2006.

San Francisco 49ers

edit

Johnson signed a one-year deal with the San Francisco 49ers on March 14, 2008.[3] He had 45 receptions for 546 yards and three touchdowns the 2008 season, his fifth straight season with 40 or more receptions.[4] In his tenure with the 49ers, he changed his jersey number from 80 to 82 in respect of retired 49ers WR Jerry Rice, whose jersey number 80 was retired in his honor.

Detroit Lions

edit

On February 28, 2009, Johnson signed a 3-year $9 million deal with the Detroit Lions.[5] He was released on July 28, 2011.[6]

Houston Texans

edit

Johnson signed with the Houston Texans on August 29, 2011.

He re-signed with the Texans on July 26, 2012.[7] On August 27, he was released by the team.[8]

NFL career statistics

edit
Year Team Games Receiving Rushing Punt returns Kickoff returns
GP GS Rec Yds Avg Y/G Lng TD FD Att Yds Avg Y/G Lng TD FD Ret Yds Avg Lng TD Ret Yds Avg Lng TD
2003 ARZ 37 8 35 438 12.5 29.2 54 1 20 1 3 3.0 3 0
2004 ARZ 16 11 49 537 11.0 33.6 40 1 29 2 -6 -3.0 -0.4 1 0 0 6 135 22.5 47 0
2005 ARZ 14 4 40 432 10.8 30.9 41 1 25 1 0 0.0 0.0 0 0 0 1 9 9.0 9 0 2 45 22.5 24 0
2006 ARZ 16 8 40 740 18.5 46.3 58 4 30 1 -3 -3.0 -0.2 -3 0 0 1 0 0.0 0 0 2 29 14.5 16 0
2007 ARZ 16 8 46 528 11.5 33.0 30 2 33
2008 SF 16 12 45 546 12.1 34.1 42 3 28
2009 DET 16 16 35 417 11.9 26.1 36 3 23
2010 DET 14 7 18 210 11.7 15.0 24 0 11
2011 HOU 16 0 6 90 15.0 5.6 40 0 4 1 1 1.0 0.1 1 0 0
Career 139 74 314 3,938 12.5 28.3 58 16 203 5 -8 -1.6 -0.1 1 0 0 3 12 4.0 9 0 10 209 20.9 47 0

References

edit
  1. ^ "2003 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c "#80 Bryant Johnson". Arizona Cardinals. Archived from the original on July 20, 2006. Retrieved June 22, 2006.
  3. ^ "49ers Add Bryant Johnson To Receiver Mix". San Jose Mercury News. March 15, 2008.
  4. ^ Niyo, John (February 28, 2008). "Lions to sign WR Bryant Johnson from 49ers". The Detroit News.
  5. ^ Niyo, John (February 28, 2008). "Lions trade Jon Kitna to Cowboys". The Detroit News.
  6. ^ Rosenthal, Gregg. "Release Tracker". Pro Football Talk. Retrieved July 29, 2011.
  7. ^ Alper, Josh (July 26, 2012). "Texans bring back Bryant Johnson, pass on Roy Williams". NBCSports.com. Retrieved July 25, 2014.
  8. ^ Gaither, Mondek among Texans' cuts
edit
  • Career statistics from ESPN