Matt Johnson (American football)
| No. 37 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Safety | ||
| Personal information | |||
| Date of birth: | July 22, 1989 | ||
| Place of birth: | Olympia, Washington | ||
| Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||
| Weight: | 212 lb (96 kg) | ||
| Career information | |||
| High school: | Tumwater (WA) | ||
| College: | Eastern Washington | ||
| NFL Draft: | 2012 / Round: 4 / Pick: 135 | ||
| Career history | |||
| Career highlights and awards | |||
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| Career NFL statistics as of Week 1, 2012 | |||
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| Player stats at PFR | |||
Matt Johnson (born July 22, 1989) is a former American football safety in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys. He played college football for Eastern Washington University.
Early years
Johnson attended Tumwater High School where he practiced football, basketball and baseball. In football he received All-league honors three years in a row.
As a senior he helped his team reach the Class 2A state semifinals, in addition to being named second-team all-Evergreen, after missing five games because of a high ankle sprain. He also helped his teams reach the 2A District IV basketball tournament and win the District IV baseball championship.
College career
Johnson accepted a scholarship from Eastern Washington University and became a starter as a redshirt freshman, posting 83 tackles (second on the team) and 4 interceptions. The next year he had 101 tackles and 6 interceptions (led the conference).
As a junior, he helped the team win the NCAA Division I FCS National Championship, while registering 105 tackles (third on the team), 5 interceptions, 8 passes defensed, 2 forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. As a senior, he missed the final four games with an injured shoulder, but managed to record 52 tackles (fourth on the team), 8 tackles for loss (led the team), 2 interceptions, 1.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles and earned All-Big Sky conference honors for the second straight season.
He finished fifth in school history and eighth in the Big Sky Conference in career tackles (341), second on the school’s career list for interceptions (17) and return yards (210).
Professional career
Pro Day
| Ht | Wt | 40-yd dash | 10-yd split | 20-yd split | 20-ss | 3-cone | Vert | Broad | BP | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 1 in | 212 lb | 4.52 s | 4.07 s | 7.01 s | 38 in | 10 ft 1 in | 18 reps | ||||||||||||
| All values from Eastern Washington pro day | |||||||||||||||||||
Dallas Cowboys
Johnson was drafted in the fourth round (135th overall) of the 2012 NFL Draft by the Dallas Cowboys, which at the time was seen as a reach by the media.[1] As a rookie, he was ineligible to participate in organized team activities until Eastern Washington's classes ended. After experiencing recurring hamstring issues during preseason, the team still kept him in the active roster, but after not being able to recover and play in any game during the regular season, he was placed on the injured reserve list on November Nov 17, 2012.[2]
Coming into 2013, there were high expectations that he could earn the starting free safety position, but he was placed on the injured reserve list on Aug 31, 2013, with a sprained left foot that he suffered in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game.[3]
After battling hamstring issues during the previous years, on July 29, 2014, he suffered a hamstring injury in training camp that kept him out of the preseason. On August 27, he was waived injured and was placed on the injured reserve list, before being released with an injury settlement on September 3.[4]
The Cowboys were very patient with Johnson because they believed in his talent, but he couldn't stay healthy, playing in only two preseason games in two seasons. He announced his retirement on February 27, 2015.
Personal life
He played along his twin brother Zach Johnson in high school and college.
References
- ↑ Archer, Todd (April 28, 2012). "Matt Johnson caps Cowboys' fourth round". ESPN. Retrieved April 30, 2012.
- ↑ "Matt Johnson headed to injured reserve". Retrieved February 19, 2016.
- ↑ "Matt Johnson hopes he can prove his worth". Retrieved February 19, 2016.
- ↑ "Dallas Cowboys cut-down analysis". Retrieved February 19, 2016.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from NFL.com • ESPN • Pro-Football-Reference