John Johnson III, is Going Back to Rams on a 1 Year Deal
The Rams are signing former Cleveland Browns safety John Johnson III, according to multiple reports. For Johnson, it will be a sort of homecoming by going back to the team that originally drafted him. Johnson played his first four seasons with the Rams, becoming one of the best Safeties in the NFL, and playing in a Super Bowl.
Johnson signed a 3 year, $36 million, deal as a free agent during the 2021 offseason, to play with the Browns. During his time in Cleveland, Johnson played well in spurts, but never really played at the same level he did with the Rams and overall couldn't meet the expectations he came with after being named 2nd Team, All-Pro, by Pro Football Focus, after the 2020 season.
Johnson's performance during his time in Cleveland was impacted by many factors, including coaching and scheme. When Johnson was with the Rams, he played more in the Strong Safety position and while in Cleveland he was tasked with playing more of the deep safety in defensive coordinator Joe Woods system.
Perhaps Johnson will be most remembered in Cleveland for his charismatic and charming media sessions. Johnson was a very outspoken teammate who never shied away from a microphone and attempted to lead through some of his comments made publicly.
While always remaining upbeat and positive, there were several times last season where Johnson attempted to call out some of the younger players in the defensive backs room for not working hard enough off the field. Ultimately, it may have seemed like finger pointing to the rest of the group, for their miscues which Johnson seemed to be at the center of many, on the field.
In the end, it was Grant Delpit who went on to breakout with his play toward the end of last season and emerge as the kind of player that we had hoped Johnson would be from day one. After the season, the Browns decided to cut ties with Johnson by releasing him in February before free agency began. The move saved the Browns over $9 million for salary cap purposes.
When free agency began this offseason, it appeared that he was going to quickly sign with the Chargers and reunite with his former defensive coordinator, Brandon Staley. For some reason that reported deal never came to fruition and Johnson received little reported interest elsewhere. After months of waiting, Johnson finally has a new home, (kind of) as he returns where it all started. Hopefully for Johnson, he can recapture some of what it was that made him one of the league's best at his position.
