.png) Johnson with theNew York Jets in 2025 | |||||||||||||||||
| No. 11 – New York Jets | |||||||||||||||||
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| Position | Linebacker | ||||||||||||||||
| Roster status | Active | ||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1999-01-07)January 7, 1999 (age 27) Eden Prairie, Minnesota, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | ||||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 254 lb (115 kg) | ||||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||||
| High school | Eden Prairie | ||||||||||||||||
| College |
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| NFL draft | 2022: 1st round, 26th overall pick | ||||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||||
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| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics as of Week 17, 2025 | |||||||||||||||||
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Jermaine Curtis Johnson II (born January 7, 1999) is an American professionalfootballlinebacker for theNew York Jets of theNational Football League (NFL). He playedcollege football for theGeorgia Bulldogs andFlorida State Seminoles, where he was named theACC Defensive Player of the Year. He also played junior college football for theIndependence Pirates. Johnson was selected by the Jets in the first round of the2022 NFL draft.
Johnson grew up inEden Prairie, Minnesota, and attendedEden Prairie High School. As a senior, he was named All-Metro after recording 37 tackles and seven sacks.[1] Johnson was academically ineligible to play NCAA Division I football after graduation.[2]
Johnson began his collegiate career atIndependence Community College.[3] While at Independence, he was featured in the fourth season of theNetflix documentary seriesLast Chance U, where he played under head coach Jason Brown.[4] As a freshman, he had 58 tackles, eight sacks and three forced fumbles.[5] Johnson transferred to theUniversity of Georgia following the season.[6]
Johnson played in every game for theGeorgia Bulldogs as a sophomore, where he had 20 tackles and 2.5 sacks.[7] As a senior, he finished third on the team with four sacks with 16 total tackles and 11 quarterback hurries.[8] Towards the end of the season, Johnson entered the transfer portal and enrolled atFlorida State University for his final season of NCAA eligibility.[9] Johnson had seven tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks in his first game for theFlorida State Seminoles, a 41–38 overtime loss to theNotre Dame Fighting Irish, and was named theAtlantic Coast Conference Defensive Lineman of the Week.[10][11] He was named theACC Defensive Player of the Year and first-team All-ACC after he finished the season with 70 tackles and led the ACC with 18 tackles for loss and 12 sacks.[12]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft4+5⁄8 in (1.95 m) | 254 lb (115 kg) | 34 in (0.86 m) | 9+7⁄8 in (0.25 m) | 4.58 s | 1.59 s | 2.68 s | 32.0 in (0.81 m) | 10 ft 5 in (3.18 m) | 27 reps | |||
| All values fromNFL Combine/Pro Day[13][14] | ||||||||||||
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Johnson was selected in the first round with the 26th overall pick by theNew York Jets in the2022 NFL draft.[15] In week 14, against theBuffalo Bills, he blocked a punt that resulted in a safety.[16] As a rookie, he appeared in 14 games and recorded 2.5 sacks and 29 total tackles.[17] In week 17 of the 2023 season, he had 37-yard interception return for a touchdown against the Browns.[18] In the 2023 season, he started in all 17 games. He finished with 7.5 sacks, 55 total tackles, one interception, seven passes defended, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery.[19]
On September 16, 2024, Johnson announced that he had suffered atorn Achilles tendon in the Jets' week 2 game against theTennessee Titans, and would miss the remainder of the season as a result.[20]
On April 21, 2025, the Jets picked up the fifth-year option on Johnson's contract.[21]