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Brad Johnson (American football)
Encyclopedia
James Bradley Johnson is a former National Football League
Super Bowl
-winning quarterback
. He was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings
in the ninth round of the 1992 NFL Draft
. He played college football
at Florida State
.
in Black Mountain
, North Carolina
and spent college at Florida State University
. He was a high school All-American in football and basketball.
in a 48-21 rout during Super Bowl XXXVII
in 2003 where he threw for two touchdowns and 215 yards.
Brad ranks 37th in career passer rating
in NFL history as of November 2011, currently tied with Matt Hasselback and Matt Cassell, but above such legends as Troy Aikman
and Warren Moon
, who are 44th and 50th respectively. Johnson holds a 72-53 career record as a starter and has completed over 60% of his passes for 13 straight seasons (1995–2007), the first quarterback in NFL history to do this (Peyton Manning
is second with twelve straight seasons).
He has been twice selected to Pro Bowl
: in 1999 and 2002. In 2003 he was named to USA Today's All-Joe team which recognizes the NFL's most unsung players.
He has eclipsed the 3,000-yard passing mark five times. In 1999, he became only the second Washington Redskins
quarterback in franchise history to eclipse 4,000 yards. He had the top passer rating in the NFC
in 2002 and he has earned NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors seven times in his career. He has also broken almost every passer record at Tampa Bay. To date, Brad Johnson is the only NFL quarterback to have thrown a touchdown pass to himself. Against the Carolina Panthers
in 1997, Johnson caught his deflected pass, juke
d, and ran three yards for a touchdown
.
In 2003 he won the NFL's "Quarterback Challenge" competition, in which he beat Pro Bowl QBs Tom Brady
, Matt Hasselbeck
, Jeff Garcia
, Mark Brunell
, Marc Bulger
and others like Byron Leftwich
and Joey Harrington
in a skills competition with four parts involving accuracy, speed and mobility, long distance throw, and "No Huddle." Former teammate Sean Salisbury
said that despite having big, strong arms and a great deep ball, Brad always played it safe and went for the fast and easy completion which earned him the nickname "Checkdown
Charlie" among friends.
in the 9th round as the 227th overall pick by the Minnesota Vikings with a pick they obtained from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
. He was the backup quarterback, only playing in a few games, and a season in NFL Europe until starting QB Warren Moon
was injured in 1996. He started eight of twelve games that year earning NFC Offensive Player of the Week twice and finishing third in the NFC with an 89.4 passer rating. The next year in 1997 he started again and was rated fourth in the NFC with 20 TDs and 3,036 passing yards, but suffered a season-ending neck injury in the 13th game. It was during this season that Johnson became the first player to complete a pass to himself for a touchdown in NFL history.
In 1998, he started the first two games for the Vikings before breaking his leg in week 2. After his leg healed, Johnson resumed his starting role in week 10, but broke his thumb in the third quarter of that game. After that, Johnson's playing time was limited to one appearance in week 16. QB Randall Cunningham
started the other games. That year, the Vikings went 15-1 and Cunningham had the best passer rating in the league, an incredible 106.0, the second-most touchdown passes with 34, the fifth-most passing yards with 3,704, and was awarded NFL's MVP award by the Maxwell Club.
After this, Vikings coach Dennis Green
decided to start Cunningham and trade Johnson to the Washington Redskins for a first, a future second, and a third-round draft pick. This was to be regretted the next year because Johnson went on to have his best season yet in Washington, while the Vikings began at 2-4 with Cunningham throwing more interceptions than touchdowns and getting benched and replaced by his backup, Jeff George
, who helped the team to an 8-2 finish and a playoff spot. George was unable to be resigned as a Viking, with Washington offering a more lucrative deal. Green decided in favor of starting untested second-year QB Daunte Culpepper
in his first year as starter.
for his first season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. That year, he broke Tampa Bay team records for passing yards with 3,406, completions with 340, and attempts with 540. In his 2002-2003 season he led the Buccaneers to their first ever Super Bowl championship and earned his 2nd Pro Bowl appearance. He was helped in the Super Bowl by a defense that scored 21 of their 48 points. That year Johnson also became the first ever Bucs QB to lead the NFC in passer rating at 92.9, and set new team records for touchdowns with 22, completion percentage at 62.3, consecutive passes without an interception with 187, and lowest interception percentage with 1.3%. He was NFC Offensive Player of the Week twice again against Minnesota and Atlanta.
After the Super Bowl, the Bucs ran into some problems. Although Johnson had good passing stats in 2003-2004 the year after the Super Bowl (3,811 yards, 26 touchdowns to break the Buc record again, 21 interceptions, named 2003 Buc MVP by the Tampa Sports Club) and 2004 (63% completion rate) they benched him the fourth game into the 2004 season because the team had gone 4-11 for the last 15 games Johnson started. When the backup quarterback, Chris Simms
was injured they started 3rd string quarterback Brian Griese
instead of Johnson partly because of salary cap
problems. Johnson asked out and was cut from the team at the end of the season. When he couldn't find a starting quarterback job he signed with the Minnesota Vikings to be the backup quarterback, the same exact spot where he began his NFL career.
had been traded in 2004, and four-time Pro Bowl Center Matt Birk
was injured so Culpepper was expected to carry the offense against the top defenses in the NFL. While playing without any offensive weapons, and falling behind early in games the Vikings began the season at 2-5 with Culpepper throwing twice as many interceptions - twelve - as touchdowns - six - and five fumbles (three lost) before tearing his MCL
, ACL
, and PCL
in the seventh game.
Johnson then took over as starting quarterback and the team then finished the season 7-2 with a six-game winning streak needing only one more win to go to the playoffs. Brad played very well and set a team record for lowest interception to attempt ratio (1.3% - same as his record in Tampa) which was the lowest in the NFL among starting QBs. While starting against teams that included the second (Bears), fourth (Ravens), fifth (Steelers), and seventh (Packers) ranked defenses in the NFL his passer rating was the third best in the NFC among starting quarterbacks, and was also better than three QBs selected to the Pro Bowl. But he struggled in those particular games with the exception of the Bears game in which the Bears had already clinched the division and played all of their 2nd and 3rd stringers. He also scored more touchdowns per game than four selected to the Pro Bowl. And despite his age he threw just as many 40+ yard passes as top 29 yr old QB Peyton Manning - six - in seven fewer games, which was the same amount as his Super Bowl year which had four more games.
Johnson was named the starting quarterback for the Vikings 2006 season, and a few days before the second game he turned 38 which made him the oldest starting quarterback in the league. Many felt his quick-release style was a good fit for then-new coach Brad Childress
's highly touted West Coast
system. The knowledge he had acquired from going to the playoffs under four different coaching systems and having winning records with seven different head coaches seemed to be an asset for first time head coach Childress. In the preseason, Johnson had a passer rating of 110.7, one of the top 10 in the league out of more than 100 quarterbacks who performed.
However in the regular season, Johnson struggled worse than Daunte Culpepper did in 2005, throwing eight touchdowns to fifteen interceptions. Midway through the season, he had already set an NFL record for passes completed short of a first down on third down in a season. Many fans grew restless for the benching of Johnson because of his conservative checkdowns, immobility, and at the same time reckless decisions which plagued the Vikings offense. His quarterback-rating on 3rd downs, with a lead, from behind, and in the red zone were the worst in the entire league. 31 QBs threw more touchdown passes while only 10 threw more interceptions than Johnson in the 2006 NFL season.
On February 28, 2007, the Vikings released Brad Johnson in favor of rookie QB Tarvaris Jackson
.
. Johnson played little in the 2007 season. He played in Week 17 against the Washington Redskins. Johnson completed 7 of 11 passes for 79 yards for no touchdowns or interceptions. Washington won 27-6.
During the 2008 season, Romo suffered a broken pinkie finger on his throwing hand in Week 6 against the Arizona Cardinals
. Johnson started for the Cowboys during the next 3 weeks until the injury healed. In Johnson's Week 7 start against the St. Louis Rams, Johnson completed 17 of 34 passes for 234 yards with one touchdown and three interceptions. He also had one fumble in the 34-14 loss.
In week 8, despite winning 13-9 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, he only passed for 122 yards and 1 TD to Roy E. Williams, and the Cowboys had the lowest total offensive yards in a winning game: 172 yards.
In week 9, he did even worse against the New York Giants
. He only completed 5 of 11 passes for 71 yards and had 2 passes intercepted. He was replaced by third-string quarterback Brooks Bollinger
at the start of the second half.
After the Cowboys' bye week, Tony Romo returned from a broken pinky to take back the starting QB role.
On February 26, 2009, the Dallas Cowboys released Brad Johnson.
After being released from the Cowboys, he retired from football.
, head football coach at the University of Georgia
football team. Johnson's father is Rick Johnson, who helped establish the Winshape Camps after working several years at Ridgecrest Camps. He currently resides in Rome, Georgia
and is currently teaching Character Education to Shorter University Students in Rome as well.
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
Super Bowl
Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather...
-winning quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
. He was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...
in the ninth round of the 1992 NFL Draft
1992 NFL Draft
The 1992 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 26–27, 1992. The league also held a supplemental draft after the regular draft...
. He played college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
at Florida State
Florida State Seminoles football
The Florida State Seminoles football team represents Florida State University in college football. The Florida State Seminoles compete in NCAA Division I-FBS and are members of the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference...
.
Early years
Brad went to Charles D. Owen High SchoolCharles D. Owen High School
Charles D. Owen High School is a public high school within the Buncombe County Schools System, located at 99 Lake Eden Road in Black Mountain, North Carolina. Its current principal is Meg Turner.-Facts:...
in Black Mountain
Black Mountain, North Carolina
Black Mountain is a town in Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 7,511 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Asheville Metropolitan Statistical Area. The town is named for the Black Mountain range of the Blue Ridge range in the Southern Appalachians.-History:Black...
, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
and spent college at Florida State University
Florida State University
The Florida State University is a space-grant and sea-grant public university located in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a comprehensive doctoral research university with medical programs and significant research activity as determined by the Carnegie Foundation...
. He was a high school All-American in football and basketball.
Professional career
He is best known for leading the Buccaneers past the Oakland RaidersOakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
in a 48-21 rout during Super Bowl XXXVII
Super Bowl XXXVII
Super Bowl XXXVII was an American football game played on January 26, 2003 at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California to decide the National Football League champion following the 2002 regular season...
in 2003 where he threw for two touchdowns and 215 yards.
Brad ranks 37th in career passer rating
Passer rating
Passer rating is a measure of the performance of quarterbacks or any other passers in American football and Canadian football. There are at least two formulae currently in use: one officially used by the National Football League and the Canadian Football League, and one used in college football...
in NFL history as of November 2011, currently tied with Matt Hasselback and Matt Cassell, but above such legends as Troy Aikman
Troy Aikman
Troy Kenneth Aikman is a former American football quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys in the National Football League. The number one overall draft pick in 1989, Aikman played twelve consecutive seasons as quarterback with the Cowboys...
and Warren Moon
Warren Moon
Harold Warren Moon is a former American professional gridiron football quarterback who played for the Canadian Football League's Edmonton Eskimos and the National Football League's Houston Oilers, Minnesota Vikings, Seattle Seahawks and Kansas City Chiefs...
, who are 44th and 50th respectively. Johnson holds a 72-53 career record as a starter and has completed over 60% of his passes for 13 straight seasons (1995–2007), the first quarterback in NFL history to do this (Peyton Manning
Peyton Manning
Peyton Williams Manning is an American football quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League . Manning holds the record for most NFL MVP awards with four. He was drafted by the Colts as the first overall pick in 1998 after a standout college football career with the...
is second with twelve straight seasons).
He has been twice selected to Pro Bowl
Pro Bowl
In professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...
: in 1999 and 2002. In 2003 he was named to USA Today's All-Joe team which recognizes the NFL's most unsung players.
He has eclipsed the 3,000-yard passing mark five times. In 1999, he became only the second Washington Redskins
Washington Redskins
The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...
quarterback in franchise history to eclipse 4,000 yards. He had the top passer rating in the NFC
National Football Conference
The National Football Conference is one of the two conferences of the National Football League . This conference and its counterpart, the American Football Conference , currently contain 16 teams each, making up the 32 teams of the NFL.-Current teams:Since 2002, the NFC has comprised 16 teams,...
in 2002 and he has earned NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors seven times in his career. He has also broken almost every passer record at Tampa Bay. To date, Brad Johnson is the only NFL quarterback to have thrown a touchdown pass to himself. Against the Carolina Panthers
Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They are currently members of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Panthers, along with the Jacksonville Jaguars, joined the NFL as expansion...
in 1997, Johnson caught his deflected pass, juke
Juke
Juke can refer to:* Juke , a harmonica instrumental recorded by Little Walter Jacobs* Juke house, a form of electronic dance music originating from Chicago* Juke joint, an informal establishment featuring blues music, dancing, and alcoholic drinks,...
d, and ran three yards for a touchdown
Touchdown
A touchdown is a means of scoring in American and Canadian football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone.-Description:...
.
In 2003 he won the NFL's "Quarterback Challenge" competition, in which he beat Pro Bowl QBs Tom Brady
Tom Brady
Thomas Edward Patrick "Tom" Brady, Jr. is an American football quarterback for the New England Patriots of the National Football League . After playing college football at Michigan, Brady was drafted by the Patriots in the sixth round of the 2000 NFL Draft.He has played in four Super Bowls,...
, Matt Hasselbeck
Matt Hasselbeck
Matthew Michael Hasselbeck is a National Football League quarterback for the Tennessee Titans. He was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the sixth round of the 1998 NFL Draft, and traded to Seattle in 2001. After becoming the starter in 2003, Hasselbeck led Seattle to six playoff appearances and...
, Jeff Garcia
Jeff Garcia
Jeffrey Jason "Jeff" Garcia is an American football quarterback who is currently a free agent. He played college football at San Jose State University....
, Mark Brunell
Mark Brunell
Mark Allen Brunell is an American football quarterback who currently plays for the New York Jets. He was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the fifth round of the 1993 NFL Draft. He played college football at Washington....
, Marc Bulger
Marc Bulger
Marc Robert Bulger [] is a former American football quarterback. He was drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the sixth round of the 2000 NFL Draft. He played college football at West Virginia....
and others like Byron Leftwich
Byron Leftwich
Byron Antron Leftwich is an American football quarterback in the National Football League who currently plays for the Pittsburgh Steelers. He was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars seventh overall in the 2003 NFL Draft. He played college football at Marshall University.Leftwich has also played...
and Joey Harrington
Joey Harrington
John Joseph "Joey" Harrington, Jr. is a former American football quarterback. He was drafted by the Detroit Lions third overall in the 2002 NFL Draft, where he played for most of his professional career. He ranks third all-time in Detroit history in pass completions, with 986...
in a skills competition with four parts involving accuracy, speed and mobility, long distance throw, and "No Huddle." Former teammate Sean Salisbury
Sean Salisbury
Richard Sean Salisbury is an American football analyst, former NFL and CFL quarterback, and actor.-Early life:Salisbury attended Orange Glen High School in Escondido, California...
said that despite having big, strong arms and a great deep ball, Brad always played it safe and went for the fast and easy completion which earned him the nickname "Checkdown
Checkdown
In American football, a checkdown pass is when the quarterback attempts to complete a short, accurate pass to a running back or tight end as a last option when the wide receivers are covered. The term means that the quarterback has "checked down" his list of receivers...
Charlie" among friends.
Early Minnesota years
Brad Johnson wasn't a full-time starter in college and was more interested in playing basketball. In 1992 he was drafted out of the Florida State UniversityFlorida State Seminoles
The Florida State Seminoles are the men's and women's sports teams of Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. Florida State participates in the NCAA's Division I . FSU joined the Atlantic Coast Conference in 1991, and competes in the Atlantic Division in any sports split into a...
in the 9th round as the 227th overall pick by the Minnesota Vikings with a pick they obtained from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football franchise based in Tampa, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the Southern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League – they are the only team in the division not to come from the old NFC West...
. He was the backup quarterback, only playing in a few games, and a season in NFL Europe until starting QB Warren Moon
Warren Moon
Harold Warren Moon is a former American professional gridiron football quarterback who played for the Canadian Football League's Edmonton Eskimos and the National Football League's Houston Oilers, Minnesota Vikings, Seattle Seahawks and Kansas City Chiefs...
was injured in 1996. He started eight of twelve games that year earning NFC Offensive Player of the Week twice and finishing third in the NFC with an 89.4 passer rating. The next year in 1997 he started again and was rated fourth in the NFC with 20 TDs and 3,036 passing yards, but suffered a season-ending neck injury in the 13th game. It was during this season that Johnson became the first player to complete a pass to himself for a touchdown in NFL history.
In 1998, he started the first two games for the Vikings before breaking his leg in week 2. After his leg healed, Johnson resumed his starting role in week 10, but broke his thumb in the third quarter of that game. After that, Johnson's playing time was limited to one appearance in week 16. QB Randall Cunningham
Randall Cunningham
Randall W. Cunningham is a former American football quarterback.After playing college football at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, he was selected in the second round of the 1985 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles, with whom he remained through the 1995 season...
started the other games. That year, the Vikings went 15-1 and Cunningham had the best passer rating in the league, an incredible 106.0, the second-most touchdown passes with 34, the fifth-most passing yards with 3,704, and was awarded NFL's MVP award by the Maxwell Club.
After this, Vikings coach Dennis Green
Dennis Green
Dennis "Denny" Green is an American football head coach for the Sacramento Mountain Lions of the United Football League...
decided to start Cunningham and trade Johnson to the Washington Redskins for a first, a future second, and a third-round draft pick. This was to be regretted the next year because Johnson went on to have his best season yet in Washington, while the Vikings began at 2-4 with Cunningham throwing more interceptions than touchdowns and getting benched and replaced by his backup, Jeff George
Jeff George
Jeffrey Scott "Jeff" George is a former American football quarterback. He was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts with the first overall pick of the 1990 NFL Draft...
, who helped the team to an 8-2 finish and a playoff spot. George was unable to be resigned as a Viking, with Washington offering a more lucrative deal. Green decided in favor of starting untested second-year QB Daunte Culpepper
Daunte Culpepper
Daunte Rachard Culpepper is an American football quarterback who is currently a free agent. He last played for the Sacramento Mountain Lions of the United Football League . Prior to joining the UFL, Culpepper enjoyed a successful National Football League career after being drafted 11th overall in...
in his first year as starter.
Washington Redskins
In 1999, Brad had the best season yet at Washington, making the Pro Bowl for the first time in his career with a 90.0 passer rating with 4,005 yards, 24 TDs and 13 INTs. His 316 completions set a Washington team record and his 4,005 passing yards ranks second all-time in Redskins history. He was also NFC Offensive Player of the Week twice that year again. He led the Washington Redskins to the playoffs and defeated the Detroit Lions in the first-round before falling to Tampa Bay by a single point the following week. The following year in 2000 the Redskins went 8-8, Johnson threw more interceptions than touchdowns, and signed with Tampa Bay as a free agent during the offseason while Jeff George started in Washington for 2001. They immediately regretted this when George had the worst stats in the league and was released for Tony Banks after the second game with a 0-2 start while Johnson again had another great season in Tampa Bay and won a Super Bowl the following year.Tampa Bay and the Super Bowl
In 2001, Johnson was reunited with former Vikings assistant-coach Tony DungyTony Dungy
Anthony Kevin "Tony" Dungy [DUN-jee] is a former professional American football player and coach in the National Football League. Dungy was head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 1996 to 2001, and head coach of the Indianapolis Colts from 2002 to 2008...
for his first season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. That year, he broke Tampa Bay team records for passing yards with 3,406, completions with 340, and attempts with 540. In his 2002-2003 season he led the Buccaneers to their first ever Super Bowl championship and earned his 2nd Pro Bowl appearance. He was helped in the Super Bowl by a defense that scored 21 of their 48 points. That year Johnson also became the first ever Bucs QB to lead the NFC in passer rating at 92.9, and set new team records for touchdowns with 22, completion percentage at 62.3, consecutive passes without an interception with 187, and lowest interception percentage with 1.3%. He was NFC Offensive Player of the Week twice again against Minnesota and Atlanta.
After the Super Bowl, the Bucs ran into some problems. Although Johnson had good passing stats in 2003-2004 the year after the Super Bowl (3,811 yards, 26 touchdowns to break the Buc record again, 21 interceptions, named 2003 Buc MVP by the Tampa Sports Club) and 2004 (63% completion rate) they benched him the fourth game into the 2004 season because the team had gone 4-11 for the last 15 games Johnson started. When the backup quarterback, Chris Simms
Chris Simms
Christopher David Simms is an American football quarterback who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the third round of in the 2003 NFL Draft. He played college football at Texas.Simms has also played for the Denver Broncos and Tampa Bay Buccaneers...
was injured they started 3rd string quarterback Brian Griese
Brian Griese
Brian David Griese is a former American football quarterback. He was drafted by the Denver Broncos in the third round of the 1998 NFL Draft. He played high school football at Christopher Columbus High School and later college football at Michigan....
instead of Johnson partly because of salary cap
Salary cap
In professional sports, a salary cap is a cartel agreement between teams that places a limit on the amount of money that can be spent on player salaries. The limit exists as a per-player limit or a total limit for the team's roster, or both...
problems. Johnson asked out and was cut from the team at the end of the season. When he couldn't find a starting quarterback job he signed with the Minnesota Vikings to be the backup quarterback, the same exact spot where he began his NFL career.
Back in Minnesota
In 2005, Minnesota was struggling with now three-time Pro Bowler Daunte Culpepper starting at quarterback. Randy MossRandy Moss
Randy Gene Moss is a former American football wide receiver. He was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the first round of the 1998 NFL Draft...
had been traded in 2004, and four-time Pro Bowl Center Matt Birk
Matt Birk
Matthew Robert Birk is an American football center for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the sixth round of the 1998 NFL Draft. He played college football at Harvard....
was injured so Culpepper was expected to carry the offense against the top defenses in the NFL. While playing without any offensive weapons, and falling behind early in games the Vikings began the season at 2-5 with Culpepper throwing twice as many interceptions - twelve - as touchdowns - six - and five fumbles (three lost) before tearing his MCL
Medial collateral ligament
The medial collateral ligament of the knee is one of the four major ligaments of the knee. It is on the medial side of the knee joint in humans and other primates. It is also known as the tibial collateral ligament, or abbreviated as the MCL.- Structure :It is a broad, flat, membranous band,...
, ACL
Anterior cruciate ligament
The anterior cruciate ligament is a cruciate ligament which is one of the four major ligaments of the human knee. In the quadruped stifle , based on its anatomical position, it is referred to as the cranial cruciate ligament.The ACL originates from deep within the notch of the distal femur...
, and PCL
Posterior cruciate ligament
The posterior cruciate ligament is one of the four major ligaments of the knee. It connects the posterior intercondylar area of the tibia to the medial condyle of the femur...
in the seventh game.
Johnson then took over as starting quarterback and the team then finished the season 7-2 with a six-game winning streak needing only one more win to go to the playoffs. Brad played very well and set a team record for lowest interception to attempt ratio (1.3% - same as his record in Tampa) which was the lowest in the NFL among starting QBs. While starting against teams that included the second (Bears), fourth (Ravens), fifth (Steelers), and seventh (Packers) ranked defenses in the NFL his passer rating was the third best in the NFC among starting quarterbacks, and was also better than three QBs selected to the Pro Bowl. But he struggled in those particular games with the exception of the Bears game in which the Bears had already clinched the division and played all of their 2nd and 3rd stringers. He also scored more touchdowns per game than four selected to the Pro Bowl. And despite his age he threw just as many 40+ yard passes as top 29 yr old QB Peyton Manning - six - in seven fewer games, which was the same amount as his Super Bowl year which had four more games.
Johnson was named the starting quarterback for the Vikings 2006 season, and a few days before the second game he turned 38 which made him the oldest starting quarterback in the league. Many felt his quick-release style was a good fit for then-new coach Brad Childress
Brad Childress
Brad "Chilly" Childress is the former head coach of the Minnesota Vikings. He attended high school at the Marmion Academy in Aurora, Illinois...
's highly touted West Coast
West Coast offense
In American football, "West Coast Offense" refers to two similar but distinct offensive-strategic-systems of play: the "Air Coryell" system; or more commonly the pass play system popularized by Bill Walsh...
system. The knowledge he had acquired from going to the playoffs under four different coaching systems and having winning records with seven different head coaches seemed to be an asset for first time head coach Childress. In the preseason, Johnson had a passer rating of 110.7, one of the top 10 in the league out of more than 100 quarterbacks who performed.
However in the regular season, Johnson struggled worse than Daunte Culpepper did in 2005, throwing eight touchdowns to fifteen interceptions. Midway through the season, he had already set an NFL record for passes completed short of a first down on third down in a season. Many fans grew restless for the benching of Johnson because of his conservative checkdowns, immobility, and at the same time reckless decisions which plagued the Vikings offense. His quarterback-rating on 3rd downs, with a lead, from behind, and in the red zone were the worst in the entire league. 31 QBs threw more touchdown passes while only 10 threw more interceptions than Johnson in the 2006 NFL season.
On February 28, 2007, the Vikings released Brad Johnson in favor of rookie QB Tarvaris Jackson
Tarvaris Jackson
Tarvaris DeAndre Jackson is an American football quarterback who is currently a member of the Seattle Seahawks. He was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the second round of the 2006 NFL Draft...
.
Dallas Cowboys
On March 5, 2007 he signed a three year deal with the Cowboys to back up Tony RomoTony Romo
Antonio Ramiro "Tony" Romo is a professional American football quarterback in the NFL for the Dallas Cowboys. Romo's career passer rating - at 95.8 - ranks third-best all time. Tony Romo didn't play in the regular season in 2003, 2004, or 2005...
. Johnson played little in the 2007 season. He played in Week 17 against the Washington Redskins. Johnson completed 7 of 11 passes for 79 yards for no touchdowns or interceptions. Washington won 27-6.
During the 2008 season, Romo suffered a broken pinkie finger on his throwing hand in Week 6 against the Arizona Cardinals
Arizona Cardinals
The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in Glendale, Arizona, a suburb of Phoenix. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
. Johnson started for the Cowboys during the next 3 weeks until the injury healed. In Johnson's Week 7 start against the St. Louis Rams, Johnson completed 17 of 34 passes for 234 yards with one touchdown and three interceptions. He also had one fumble in the 34-14 loss.
In week 8, despite winning 13-9 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, he only passed for 122 yards and 1 TD to Roy E. Williams, and the Cowboys had the lowest total offensive yards in a winning game: 172 yards.
In week 9, he did even worse against the New York Giants
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
. He only completed 5 of 11 passes for 71 yards and had 2 passes intercepted. He was replaced by third-string quarterback Brooks Bollinger
Brooks Bollinger
Brooks Bollinger is a retired American football quarterback. He was drafted by the New York Jets in the sixth round of the 2003 NFL Draft...
at the start of the second half.
After the Cowboys' bye week, Tony Romo returned from a broken pinky to take back the starting QB role.
On February 26, 2009, the Dallas Cowboys released Brad Johnson.
After being released from the Cowboys, he retired from football.
Career statistics
| Year | |G | |Passing | |Rushing | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Comp | Att | PCT | Yards | Y/A | TD | INT | Att | Yards | TD | |||
| MIN Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960... |
4 | 22 | 37 | 59.5 | 150 | 4.1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -2 | 0 | |
| MIN | 5 | 25 | 36 | 69.4 | 272 | 7.6 | 0 | 2 | 9 | -9 | 0 | |
| MIN | 12 | 195 | 311 | 62.7 | 2,258 | 7.3 | 17 | 10 | 34 | 90 | 1 | |
| MIN | 13 | 275 | 452 | 60.8 | 3,036 | 6.7 | 20 | 12 | 35 | 139 | 0 | |
| MIN | 4 | 65 | 101 | 64.4 | 747 | 7.4 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 15 | 0 | |
| WSH Washington Redskins The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,... |
16 | 316 | 519 | 60.9 | 4,005 | 7.7 | 24 | 13 | 26 | 31 | 2 | |
| WSH | 12 | 227 | 364 | 62.4 | 2,505 | 6.9 | 11 | 15 | 22 | 58 | 1 | |
| TB Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football franchise based in Tampa, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the Southern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League – they are the only team in the division not to come from the old NFC West... |
16 | 340 | 559 | 60.8 | 3,406 | 6.1 | 13 | 11 | 39 | 120 | 3 | |
| TB | 13 | 281 | 451 | 62.3 | 3,049 | 6.8 | 22 | 6 | 13 | 30 | 0 | |
| TB | 16 | 354 | 570 | 62.1 | 3,811 | 6.7 | 26 | 21 | 25 | 33 | 0 | |
| TB Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football franchise based in Tampa, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the Southern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League – they are the only team in the division not to come from the old NFC West... |
4 | 65 | 103 | 63.1 | 674 | 6.5 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 23 | 0 | |
| MIN | 15 | 184 | 294 | 62.6 | 1,885 | 6.4 | 12 | 4 | 18 | 53 | 0 | |
| MIN | 15 | 270 | 439 | 61.5 | 2,750 | 6.3 | 9 | 15 | 29 | 82 | 1 | |
| DAL Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas... |
16 | 7 | 11 | 63.6 | 79 | 7.2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | |||
| 0 | ||||||||||||
| DAL | 16 | 41 | 78 | 52.6 | 427 | 5.5 | 2 | 5 | 2 | |||
| 0 | ||||||||||||
| Total | 178 | 2,668 | 4,326 | 61.7 | 29,054 | 6.7 | 166 | 122 | 276 | 657 | 8 | |
Personal
Johnson has two children with his wife, Nikki. His brother-in-law is Mark RichtMark Richt
Mark Richt is the head coach of the University of Georgia Bulldogs football team. His previous affiliations include fourteen years at Florida State University, where he served as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, and one year as offensive coordinator at East Carolina University.-Early...
, head football coach at the University of Georgia
University of Georgia
The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...
football team. Johnson's father is Rick Johnson, who helped establish the Winshape Camps after working several years at Ridgecrest Camps. He currently resides in Rome, Georgia
Rome, Georgia
Located in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, Rome is the largest city and the county seat of Floyd County, Georgia, United States. It is the principal city of the Rome, Georgia Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Floyd County...
and is currently teaching Character Education to Shorter University Students in Rome as well.