David Johnson - Page 3 - NFL News, Rumors, & Updates

Provides explosive play Johnson carried the ball four times for 30 yards in Saturday's preseason game against Tampa Bay.

Impact Johnson entered the game on the team's second possession behind Phillip Lindsay. He shared the drive with Mark Ingram, though Johnson proved to be more explosive by ripping of a 21-yard gain. Johnson was listed third on the team's depth chart during training camp, and some beat reports have suggested he may serve as the team's third-down back. However, Houston has among the most fluid roles among skill-position players around the league. That leaves it somewhat unclear exactly what type of usage Johnson will see in Week 1 vs. Jacksonville.

AUGUST 29, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Nearly invisible Saturday Johnson did not receive a carry and failed to catch his only target in Saturday's win over the Cowboys.

Impact The Texans used all three of Mark Ingram, Phillip Lindsay and Johnson in the first quarter before removing their starters, but it was the first two who saw most of the action, leaving only third-down scraps for DJ. This is shaping up to be a true backfield committee during the regular season, which would put a very firm ceiling on Johnson's fantasy value. Despite his apparent role as the primary pass-catching option among the trio, he may not see enough snaps to even be an asset in many PPR formats.

AUGUST 22, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Usage suggests third-down back Johnson could be the Texans' third-down back, Aaron Reiss of The Athletic reports.

Impact It would be foolish to make any definitive statements about the regular season based on a team's first preseason game, but when the first team offense was on the field in Saturday's preseason opener, Johnson entered the game on third downs. His lone carry was a third-down run in the red zone. The early downs were handled by Phillip Lindsay. And none of this factors in the potential role of Mark Ingram, who did not play Saturday, which is treatment befitting a starting running back and suggests a role for him when the season starts. Johnson's role may not be so narrow as seen in Preseason Week 1, but he's not expected to carry the same load he did in 2020. Prior to Johnson's Week 9 concussion, he and Dallas' Ezekiel Elliott led the position in offensive snap percentage.

AUGUST 17, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Listed behind Ingram and Lindsay The Texans' initial unofficial depth chart lists Johnson behind Mark Ingram and Phillip Lindsay, Brooks Kubena of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Impact That said, given the success that all three backs have had at the NFL level at various times, it seems quite likely that Houston's backfield could turn into a committee situation in which weekly workload is determined by a hot-hand/matchup-based approach. While that's less than ideal from a fantasy perspective, a run-heavy attack out of the gate this season is plausible if Tyrod Taylor serves as the team's starting QB.

AUGUST 11, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

FSU extends contract of RB coach David Johnson, gives him raise FSU extends David Johnson's contract through 2022 and gives him a slight raise

AUGUST 6, 2021 • 247SPORTS.COM

WATCH: David Johnson discusses his running back room FSU running backs coach David Johnson discusses his room heading into preseason camp.

AUGUST 6, 2021 • 247SPORTS.COM

Facing veteran competition Johnson is joined in the Houston backfield by fellow veterans Phillip Lindsay, Mark Ingram and Rex Burkhead, Sarah Barshop of ESPN.com reports.

Impact Johnson, Lindsay and Ingram all have experience in lead roles, while Burkhead is a versatile reserve who has never taken more than 74 carries in a season. Though he was a mediocre performer in his first season for Houston, Johnson remains the favorite to lead their backfield in 2021, in part due to a $4.25 million guarantee on his $6 million salary. Lindsay, Ingram and Burkhead all settled for smaller deals this offseason, with the latter two potentially even facing battles for roster spots this summer. Johnson's place on the team should be safe, but it's possible he ends up splitting carries in what could be a bottom-five offense if Deshaun Watson isn't available to play due to his ongoing legal trouble. There's also some chance Johnson ends up in a three-down role, which could lead to fantasy value even if he's inefficient and doesn't have too many scoring opportunities.

JULY 7, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

3 Free Agents the Steelers Can Sign Next Offseason With Increased 2022 Salary Cap It's never too early to start looking ahead to the 2022 NFL offseason, especially given the recent news of an increased cap number for every...

MAY 27, 2021 • FANDUEL.COM

Texans RB David Johnson focuses on health, comfortability to improve in 2021 Houston Texans running back David Johnson is focusing on improving his health and comfortability with the offense to excel in 2021.

MARCH 30, 2021 • USATODAY.COM

David Johnson Looks to Build on 2020 Finish | Daily Brew Running back David Johnson finished last season with a flourish, and hopes it'll carry over into the 2021 campaign.

MARCH 29, 2021 • HOUSTONTEXANS.COM

Texans restructure contract of RB David Johnson The Houston Texans have restructured the contract of former All-Pro running back David Johnson.

MARCH 3, 2021 • USATODAY.COM

Agrees to reduce salary Johnson has agreed to restructure his contract, which now will have $4.25 million guaranteed out of a potential $6 million in 2021 compensation, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Impact Prior to the new arrangement, Johnson was scheduled for a $7.95 million base salary, including $2.1 million guaranteed. The first number goes down and the second up, with player and team reaching an agreement to keep Johnson in Houston for the final year of his lucrative contract. Now that that's settled, the Texans can figure out the rest of their roster, starting with the tumultuous Deshaun Watson situation. Johnson's team context will go from bad to worse if the Texans don't have the star QB under center.

MARCH 2, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Report: Texans intend to keep RB David Johnson The Houston Texans would like to keep running back David Johnson, who has a salary cap figure of $8.5 million in 2021.

FEBRUARY 26, 2021 • USATODAY.COM

Still wanted by Houston The Texans hope to retain Johnson for 2021, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Impact Johnson put together a fairly solid inaugural campaign in Houston, with 1,005 scrimmage yards and eight total touchdowns, but he was also limited to 12 appearances due to injuries. The 29-year-old carries an $8.8 million cap hit for 2021, per Spotrac.com, a figure which Wilson notes the Texans want to bring down. Johnson only carries a $2.1 million dead cap figure, so if he's unwilling to agree on a restructured contract the team could cut him without much penalty, as happened to former backfield mate Duke Johnson on Friday. Agreeing to terms on a deal that would help him stick around could be beneficial for Johnson, as he seems to have a clear path to a large workload in Houston that likely wouldn't be there for him on the open market.

FEBRUARY 26, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Was Deshaun Watson's 2020 season the best by a quarterback in more than a decade?

The Texans struggled in 2020, but PFF said Deshaun Watson far exceeded expectations. Do Skip and Shannon agree?

FEBRUARY 16, 2021 • FOX SPORTS

Was Deshaun Watson's 2020 season the best by a quarterback in more than a decade?

Ends season on high note Johnson carried the ball 14 times for 84 yards and a touchdown and caught three of five targets for 36 yards in Sunday's 41-38 loss to the Titans.

Impact While the circumstances of his arrival in Houston, as part of Bill O'Brien's last ill-advised trade, were less than ideal, Johnson put together a solid 2020 campaign when he was healthy, amassing 1,005 scrimmage yards and eight TDs (six rushing, two receiving) in 12 games. With one more season left on his current contract, Johnson could well find himself back with the Texans next year, but he would also carry a small dead cap hit of $2.1 million if the team's new regime decides to move in a different direction in the backfield.

JANUARY 4, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Johnson scores career-high 20 in Louisville's 76-64 victory CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. (AP) — David Johnson scored 14 of his career-high 20 points in the first half when Louisville established a double-digi...

JANUARY 2, 2021 • OLEANTIMESHERALD.COM

Texans RB David Johnson nominated for FedEx Ground Player of the Week Houston Texans running back David Johnson has been nominated for the FedEx Ground NFL Player of the Week for Week 16.

DECEMBER 28, 2020 • USATODAY.COM

David Johnson's best plays from 139-yard game | Week 16 Watch all of Houston Texans running back David Johnson's best rushes and catches from his 139-yard game during Week 16 against the Cincinnat...

DECEMBER 27, 2020 • NFL.COM

Another remarkable effort in loss Johnson rushed 12 times for 128 yards and a touchdown and secured all three of his targets for 11 yards and another score in the Texans' 37-31 loss to the Bengals on Sunday.

Impact A week after racking up 11 receptions in a loss to the Colts, Johnson stood out for his work on the ground Sunday with a highly efficient performance highlighted by a 48-yard run. Johnson had yet to cross the 100-yard mark on the ground as a Texan until Sunday, and his receiving touchdown was his first since Week 7. Johnson will look to put together another strong game to cap off his first season in Houston against the vulnerable Titans defense in the Week 17 finale.

DECEMBER 27, 2020 • ROTOWIRE

WATCH: Texans QB Deshaun Watson throws touchdown pass to RB David Johnson against the Bengals Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson threw his 29th touchdown pass of the season to running back David Johnson against the Cincinnati B...

DECEMBER 27, 2020 • USATODAY.COM

Revisiting Texans predictions: What I got wrong (and right!) about this season Let's just forget about that prediction the Texans would make the playoffs, OK?

DECEMBER 23, 2020 • THEATHLETIC.COM

Houston Texans: David Johnson returns with excellent receiving numbers David Johnson returned to the Houston Texans starting lineup in Week 15. Here is the thing for Houston Texans running back David Johnson fro...

DECEMBER 21, 2020 • TOROTIMES.COM

David Johnson impacts offense, through the air RB David Johnson caught 11 passes for 106 yards in Sunday's loss at Indianapolis.

DECEMBER 21, 2020 • HOUSTONTEXANS.COM

David Johnson's best plays from 133-yard game Week 15 Watch all of the best plays from Houston Texans running back David Johnson's during his week 15 matchup versus the Indianapolis Colts.

DECEMBER 21, 2020 • SPORTINGNEWS.COM

DAVID JOHNSON NEWS

NEWS

BIO

STATS

VIDEOS

GAME LOG

INJURIES

Was Deshaun Watson's 2020 season the best by a quarterback in more than a decade?