The Facts: A tenure highlighted by promise and marked by injury, former second-round pick Johnson's days in Detroit have come to a close. Johnson is being waived by the Lions, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Wednesday evening.
Diehards Line:Now, Johnson will hit the waiver wire after exiting a suddenly crowded Lions backfield led by D'Andre Swift and also boasting free-agent addition Jamaal Williams and seventh-round draft pick Jermar Jefferson. After Detroit took Johnson at No. 43 overall in 2018, he was a breath of fresh air to a long-toothless Lions rushing attack. However, after rushing for 641 yards and a trio of touchdowns, Johnson's rookie season was cut to 10 weeks with a knee injury. Another knee injury held Johnson to just eight contests in 2019. Last season, Johnson played in all 16 games for the first time, but started in only two and tallied a career-low 181 yards as Swift's promise and Adrian Peterson presence had dimmed Johnson's prospects. Now, the 23-year-old Auburn product is bound for another ballclub and looking to re-start a career that looked pretty promising not that long ago.