Leonard Johnson Could Be Diamond In the Rough For Buccaneers

[michael89156]

Leonard Johnson Could Be Diamond In the Rough For Buccaneers


By Max Luckan
 
Leonard Johnson, CB, #29

 Height: 5’10”
 Weight: 202 lbs.
 Age: 22
 Hometown: Clearwater, Florida
 College: Iowa State
 Experience: Rookie
 





credit: Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images
 


 With thinning depth at the cornerback position, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have turned to rookie CB Leonard Johnson the past few weeks and have asked him to step-in and play. And he has responded by playing particularly well. Johnson played extensively for the first time two weeks ago against the Minnesota Vikings, which is when he recorded his first career interception. Then on Sunday against the Oakland Raiders, Johnson got significant reps because Eric Wright was banged up and E.J. Biggers didn’t play all that well.
 
Born in Clearwater, Florida, Johnson was a standout quarterback at Largo High School before moving on to play cornerback at Iowa State from 2008-2011.
 
While attending Iowa State as a freshman, Johnson set an NCAA record for most kick return yards in a game with 319 – in a single game. He started 43 out of the 50 games he played for Iowa State, racking up six interceptions and 247 tackles.


After declaring for the 2012 NFL Draft, Johnson was labeled as one of the best cornerback prospects in the entire draft. However, his draft stock plummeted when he posted a poor 4.72 seconds in the 40-yard dash at the combine. The poor time was a result of Johnson being ill days before the combine, and as a result, his performance was out of sorts.
 
Furthermore, Johnson’s coverage skills were questioned, as was his ability to cover physical receivers in the NFL. The latter was probably unjustified criticism, as Johnson did an excellent job on Justin Blackmon, who played for Oklahoma State and is now with the Jacksonville Jaguars and was the top receiver in the 2012 draft.
 
All that didn’t seem to faze Bucs GM Mark Dominik, who took a chance and signed him as an undrafted free agent. Sure enough, Johnson made the roster and has played a good amount in recent weeks.
 
And looking at the tape, it is apparent that Johnson is a physical corner, sure tackler, and has a knack for finding the ball. In the past two weeks alone, Johnson has two interceptions and has defended six passes, while racking up eight tackles. All that may not seem like a lot, but his contribution has flown way under the radar. Obviously, all the attention has been placed on Aqib Talib, who was eventually traded to New England, and Eric Wright, who could be suspended in the near future.
 
Sure, Johnson could be a little undersized. Yes, he’s a rookie and has only a little experience under his belt. But the thing that stands out and Tampa Bay head coach Greg Schiano would agree, is his work ethic and will to play the game and play it right. Saying Johnson will be one of the top cornerbacks in the league is, undoubtedly, premature, but his play in recent weeks shouldn’t be ignored.
 
The Bucs have been running out of options in the secondary, which hasn’t performed well by any means pretty much the whole season, but Johnson may be able to alleviate some of the pressure if he continues to do his job as a “Buccaneer Man.”




http://tampa.cbslocal.com/content-vertical/local-football-bloggers/

[baybuc35]

Very slow

[GayRobot]

Very slow

Good quality post about our undrafted rookie.... No wonder we can't sell out our games. Worse fan base ever

[tripblood]

While Johnson doesn't havent great speed he reminds me of Donnie Abraham with his instincts and physicality... At worst we have a solid backup, but more likely a good #2 corner.

[BucNY]

Very slow

Good quality post about our undrafted rookie.... No wonder we can't sell out our games. Worse fan base ever

Agreed. This is the mentality that the NFL combine has given us. Below average 40 yard dash, so he must be terrible. Nevermind that trained track athletes tend run faster 40's. Nevermind that running it with pads on changes things. Never mind running with a ball in your hand or chasing an opponent changes things, and mostly, nevermind that how quickly a player can recognize a play and react to it what really determines how fast he'll get there. Also nevermind footwork, angles etc.... which determine how efficiently a player moves.

Nevermind all that stuff. He ran slowly in a straight line in spandex so he is garbage. Jerry Rice ran a 4.7 but he can't possibly be any good. Dexter Jackson was a low 4.3 so he must be great. I guess we can all agree that much much more than speed determines how good of a football player a guy is.

[BucNY]

I've said it before and I'll continue to say it. The NFL combine SHOULD NOT significantly affect how a player is rated. Watch his tape, watch is game speed, game strength, footwork etc.... Combine is interesting but 40 time and bench press have little to do with playing football.

Leonard Johnson was rated one of the top 6-8 CBs in the draft by many including Kiper and Mayock. We shouldn't be surprised by how well he is playing unless you think a 4.72 40 somehow correlates to his level of skill.

[JDouble]

I like the kid and have my fingers crossed for him.....but this offseason I'd have our strength and conditioning coaches put together a specific tailored offseason program aimed at increasing speed. I mean, you can't make him a burner....but there are are things you can do to increase your overall explosiveness and speed.

[3rd String Kicker]

He plays a lot faster than his time without pads on in a straight line indicates. (In my opinion)

[tatmanfish]

lets hope hes a solid nickel at this point. If he develops into more, even better.

His speed is fine. Hes not a burner, but he isnt molasses either.

[GayRobot]

I like the kid and have my fingers crossed for him.....but this offseason I'd have our strength and conditioning coaches put together a specific tailored offseason program aimed at increasing speed. I mean, you can't make him a burner....but there are are things you can do to increase your overall explosiveness and speed.

I have to disagree. Maybe when your still developing but you're talking about a grown adult who's been through probably 10+ years of high level competitive football already. You think he already hasn't been through a boatload of sprinting seminars. Not everybody has the same physical makeup to run the same speed.

[baybuc35]

Very slow

Good quality post about our undrafted rookie.... No wonder we can't sell out our games. Worse fan base ever

its pretty obvious I don't live in tampa .. Also I won't take insults from a guy who's name is gay robot and just created his name..wonder who this really is

[BucNY]

Very slow

Good quality post about our undrafted rookie.... No wonder we can't sell out our games. Worse fan base ever

its pretty obvious I don't live in tampa .. Also I won't take insults from a guy who's name is gay robot and just created his name..wonder who this really is

Well it was a pretty stupid post, just sayin'

[baybuc35]

Very slow

Good quality post about our undrafted rookie.... No wonder we can't sell out our games. Worse fan base ever

its pretty obvious I don't live in tampa .. Also I won't take insults from a guy who's name is gay robot and just created his name..wonder who this really is

Well it was a pretty stupid post, just sayin'

im not saying he won't be good or is not good he is just painfully slow.. Just sayin'

[baybuc35]

Very slow

Good quality post about our undrafted rookie.... No wonder we can't sell out our games. Worse fan base ever

its pretty obvious I don't live in tampa .. Also I won't take insults from a guy who's name is gay robot and just created his name..wonder who this really is

Well it was a pretty stupid post, just sayin'

if you want more of a break down I would say .. Less than average speed and needs to work on his tackling.. Great ball skills and can locate the ball and receive.  That's what I see from Sunday ticket and ill be watching them live December against Philly .. Travel once year to a home game.just sayin'

[GameTime]

]im not saying he won't be good or is not good he is just painfully slow.. Just sayin'

have you seen any WR's run by him yet?