KeeSean Johnson (born October 9, 1996) is an American professional football wide receiver for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at Fresno State and is the program's all-time leader in receiving yards and receptions.[1] Johnson was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the sixth round of the 2019 NFL draft.
 Johnson with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in 2024 | |||||||||
| No. 3 – Saskatchewan Roughriders | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Wide receiver | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | October 9, 1996 Mountain View, California, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 201 lb (91 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Palo Alto (Palo Alto, California) | ||||||||
| College: | Fresno State (2014–2018) | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2019 / round: 6 / pick: 174 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
| |||||||||
Early life
editJohnson attended and played football at Palo Alto High School, in Palo Alto, California. Johnson played for the same high school as Davante Adams, before they both played for Fresno State University.[2]
College career
editJohnson redshirted during his 2014 freshman season and only played one game at Fresno State. In 2015, Johnson started some games. In 2016, as a sophomore, Johnson led the team in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns.[3]
During the 2017 season as a junior, Johnson led the team in receptions, receiving yards, and touchdowns for the second-straight season. He caught at least one pass in all 14 games, extending his streak to a program record 36 consecutive games with a catch dating back to 2015, breaking Henry Ellard's record of 34, set from 1979–82.[4] Johnson was named a 2017 All-Mountain West Conference Second-Team selection.[5]
In 2018, as a senior, Johnson led the team in receptions, receiving yards, and touchdowns for the third straight season[6] and became the program's all-time leader in both career receptions, with 275 receptions, and career receiving yards, with 3,463 yards.[7] For the season, Johnson was fourth in the FBS in receiving yards and fifth in receptions; among active players' careers, he ranked second and first, respectively.[6] Johnson also extended his streak of consecutive games with a pass caught to 50.[6] He was named an All-Mountain West Second-Team selection.[8]
Statistics
editSource:[9]
| Year | Team | Games | Rec | Yards | YPC | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Fresno State University | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2015 | Fresno State University | 12 | 37 | 337 | 9.1 | 2 | 29 |
| 2016 | Fresno State University | 12 | 66 | 773 | 11.7 | 6 | 53 |
| 2017 | Fresno State University | 14 | 77 | 1,013 | 13.2 | 8 | 81 |
| 2018 | Fresno State University | 14 | 95 | 1,340 | 14.1 | 8 | 45 |
| Total | 53 | 275 | 3,463 | 12.0 | 24 | 81 | |
Professional career
edit| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 1+1⁄8 in (1.86 m) |
201 lb (91 kg) |
32 in (0.81 m) |
9+1⁄2 in (0.24 m) |
4.53 s | 1.59 s | 2.63 s | 4.23 s | 6.81 s | 32.5 in (0.83 m) |
9 ft 9 in (2.97 m) |
14 reps | |
| All values from NFL Combine/Pro Day[10][11] | ||||||||||||
Arizona Cardinals
editJohnson was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the sixth round (174th overall) of the 2019 NFL draft.[12] He made his NFL debut in the Cardinals' 2019 season opener against the Detroit Lions. In the 27–27 tie, he had five receptions for 46 yards on ten targets.[13] Johnson scored his first NFL touchdown on October 31, 2019, against San Francisco 49ers.[14]
On September 11, 2020, Johnson was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list,[15] and activated 10 days later.[16]
On August 30, 2021, Johnson was waived by the Cardinals.[17]
Philadelphia Eagles
editOn September 2, 2021, Johnson was signed to the practice squad of the Philadelphia Eagles.[18] He was placed on the COVID list on January 1, 2022, and activated four days later.[19][20]
San Francisco 49ers
editOn January 26, 2022, Johnson signed a reserve/future contract with the 49ers.[21] He was waived on August 15, 2022.[22]
Atlanta Falcons
editOn August 17, 2022, Johnson signed with the Atlanta Falcons.[23] He was waived on August 30.[24]
Buffalo Bills
editOn October 11, 2022, Johnson was signed to the practice squad of the Buffalo Bills. He signed a reserve/future contract on January 23, 2023.[25] He was waived on August 29, 2023.[26]
Saskatchewan Roughriders
editOn February 29, 2024, Johnson signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League.[27]
Personal life
editJohnson has confirmed that he was not named after former NFL receiver Keyshawn Johnson, though KeeSean has met Keyshawn before. Coincidentally, both KeeSean and Keyshawn have worn jersey number 19 in the NFL.[28]
References
edit- ^ "Fresno State Bulldogs Receiving". Sports Reference. Retrieved September 18, 2019.
- ^ "Palo Alto Grad at Fresno State". PaloAlto Online.
- ^ "2016 Fresno State Bulldogs Stats". Sports Reference. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
- ^ "CSJ Mountain West Championship Game Preview". College Sports Journal. November 30, 2018.
- ^ "MWC Award Selections". MW Wire. November 29, 2017.
- ^ a b c De Leon, Anthony (April 27, 2019). "KeeSean Johnson gets drafted in sixth round, Bulldogs sign also as free agents". The Collegian. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
- ^ "Fresno State Bulldogs Receiving". Sports Reference. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
- ^ "MWC All Selection Teams". MW Wire.
- ^ "KeeSean Johnson Football Statistics | The Football Database". FootballDB.com.
- ^ "KeeSean Johnson Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved September 18, 2019.
- ^ "2019 NFL Draft Scout KeeSean Johnson College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved November 2, 2023.
- ^ Cox, Seth (April 27, 2019). "Arizona Cardinals take wide receiver KeeSean Johnson out of Fresno State". SB Nation. Vox Media. Retrieved September 18, 2019.
- ^ "Cardinals' KeeSean Johnson: Receives 10 targets in pro debut". CBSSports.com. September 9, 2019. Retrieved September 25, 2019.
- ^ Odegard, Kyle (November 1, 2019). "Rookie Wideouts Andy Isabella, KeeSean Johnson Seize Moment". Arizona Cardinals. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
- ^ Urban, Darren (September 11, 2020). "KeeSean Johnson First Cardinal Player On COVID Reserve List". azcardinals.com.
- ^ Urban, Darren (September 21, 2020). "Maxx Williams Goes To IR; KeeSean Johnson Activated From COVID List". AZCardinals.com. Retrieved September 25, 2020.
- ^ Urban, Darren (August 30, 2021). "Cardinals Release 10, Including KeeSean Johnson". AZCardinals.com.
- ^ McPherson, Chris (September 2, 2021). "Eagles sign DT Hassan Ridgeway; place T/G Jack Driscoll, TE Tyree Jackson, and CB Josiah Scott on Injured Reserve". PhiladelphiaEagles.com.
- ^ Bowman, Paul (January 1, 2022). "Barnett Returns From COVID List As Two More Enter Protocols". SportsTalkPhilly.com.
- ^ McPherson, Chris (January 5, 2022). "Eagles activate WR KeeSean Johnson from the Practice Squad Reserve/COVID-19 list". PhiladelphiaEagles.com.
- ^ "49ers add WR KeeSean Johnson on reserve/future contract". Niners Wire. USA Today. January 26, 2022.
- ^ "49ers release Darqueze Dennard, waive three". NBCSports.com. August 15, 2022.
- ^ McElhaney, Tori (August 17, 2022). "Falcons add receiver to 2022 preseason roster, release another". AtlantaFalcons.com. Retrieved August 17, 2022.
- ^ Bair, Scott (August 30, 2022). "Falcons announce initial 53-man roster heading into 2022 regular season". AtlantaFalcons.com.
- ^ Jenkins, Chris (January 23, 2023). "Bills signed these players to reserve/future contracts for 2023". BuffaloBills.com.
- ^ White, Alec (August 29, 2023). "Bills announce moves to get to 53-man roster". BuffaloBills.com.
- ^ "Riders Ink Arizona Cardinals Draft Selection Keesean Johnson". Saskatchewan Roughriders. February 29, 2024. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
- ^ Root, Jess (April 30, 2019). "Believe it or not, Cardinals WR KeeSean Johnson isn't named for Keyshawn Johnson". USA Today. Gannett. Retrieved September 18, 2019.