Jovon Johnson
Encyclopedia
Jovon Johnson is an Canadian football
defensive back
for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers
of the Canadian Football League.
Johnson was the winner of the CFL's Most Outstanding Defensive Player Award
in 2011, becoming the first defensive back to win the award in the league. He is also a two time CFL All-Star and three time CFL East Division All-Star. In addition, he was a member of the 2007 Saskatchewan Roughriders
that won the Grey Cup
, though he spent little time on the active roster and finished the penultimate game on the practice roster.
. He was signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers
after cornerback
Chidi Iwuoma
and linebacker
Richard Seigler
were placed on injured reserve
. He spent all of his playing time on the Steelers' special teams recording 1 tackle and 1 assist. He was released from the Pittsburgh Steelers on September 1, 2007.
The Saskatchewan Roughriders
signed Johnson on October 5, 2007 to a contract with and placed on their Developmental Squad. He made his CFL debut October 21, 2007 against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats
.
At the end of February in 2008, he was signed by his hometown Erie RiverRats of the AIFA. In early 2007 he had signed to play with the city's previous AIFA franchise, the now defunct Erie Freeze
, but did not play for the Freeze and decided to play for the Steelers instead.
Johnson was signed by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League in April 2008 and started 17 of 18 games during the 2008 CFL season
. He led the Bombers in defensive tackles with 56 and added 3 INTs.
He then returned to RiverRats for the 2009 AIFA season following a contract signing in January 2009. He was still under contract in the CFL however the season starts later in the year which would allow him to play in the AIFA. After only one game, it was found out that there was a clause in Johnson's contract with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers that prevents him from playing with any other team. With that, he returned to Winnipeg.
The 2011 Winnipeg Blue Bombers season
proved to be a successful one for Johnson, helping to lead the Bombers to their first division title in ten years. He was part of a noteworthy Bombers' defence that had self-titled itself 'Swaggerville' and was named the CFL East Division's most outstanding defensive player. Following this, Johnson was named a CFL East Division all-star for the third consecutive time, as well as being named to his second CFL All-Star team a short time later. Johnson followed this up with an appearance as the first defensive back to win the CFL's Most Outstanding Defensive Player Award. He won the award as a the standout player on a team full of talented defensive backs who led the led the league in fewest passing yards allowed, holding opponents to the lowest pass completion percentage, and led the league with most team interceptions. Johnson accomplished this with teammates such as Jonathan Hefney
, Alex Suber
, and Brandon Stewart
.
Canadian football
Canadian football is a form of gridiron football played exclusively in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed prolate spheroid ball into the opposing team's scoring area...
defensive back
Defensive back
In American football and Canadian football, defensive backs are the players on the defensive team who take positions somewhat back from the line of scrimmage; they are distinguished from the defensive line players and linebackers, who take positions directly behind or close to the line of...
for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers
Winnipeg Blue Bombers
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. They are currently members of the East Division of the Canadian Football League . They play their home games at Canad Inns Stadium, and plan to move to a new stadium for the 2012 season.The Blue Bombers were founded...
of the Canadian Football League.
Johnson was the winner of the CFL's Most Outstanding Defensive Player Award
CFL's Most Outstanding Defensive Player Award
The Most Outstanding Defensive Player Award is annually rewarded to the best defensive player in the Canadian Football League. This is the third-last award to be given during the CFL Awards banquet, which takes place the week before Grey Cup weekend in the same city where it is hosted...
in 2011, becoming the first defensive back to win the award in the league. He is also a two time CFL All-Star and three time CFL East Division All-Star. In addition, he was a member of the 2007 Saskatchewan Roughriders
2007 Saskatchewan Roughriders season
The 2007 Saskatchewan Roughriders finished in 2nd place in the West division with a 12–6–0 record, which was their highest finish since 1988 when they also finished 2nd...
that won the Grey Cup
Grey Cup
The Grey Cup is both the name of the championship of the Canadian Football League and the name of the trophy awarded to the victorious team. It is Canada's largest annual sports and television event, regularly drawing a Canadian viewing audience of about 3 to 4 million individuals...
, though he spent little time on the active roster and finished the penultimate game on the practice roster.
Career
Johnson played his high school ball (and basketball) at Mercyhurst Prep. He attended the University of IowaUniversity of Iowa
The University of Iowa is a public state-supported research university located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is the oldest public university in the state. The university is organized into eleven colleges granting undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees...
. He was signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC...
after cornerback
Cornerback
A cornerback is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in American and Canadian football. Cornerbacks cover receivers, to defend against pass offenses and make tackles. Other members of the defensive backfield include the safeties and occasionally linebackers. The cornerback position...
Chidi Iwuoma
Chidi Iwuoma
Chidi Iwuoma is an American football cornerback who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the Detroit Lions as an undrafted free agent in 2001. He played college football at California....
and linebacker
Linebacker
A linebacker is a position in American football that was invented by football coach Fielding H. Yost of the University of Michigan. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up approximately three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage, behind the defensive linemen...
Richard Seigler
Richard Seigler
Richard Joseph Seigler is the current defensive line assistant coach of the Portland State Vikings college football team and former NCAA All-American and NFL Linebacker. He was drafted out of Oregon State University in 2004 by the San Francisco 49ers. In November 2005, he was acquired by the...
were placed on injured reserve
Injured reserve
The injured reserve list is a list of reserved players who are injured and unable to play for a period of time, used most prominently in the National Hockey League and National Football League . It is used because these leagues have a maximum number of players on the team roster, so placing a...
. He spent all of his playing time on the Steelers' special teams recording 1 tackle and 1 assist. He was released from the Pittsburgh Steelers on September 1, 2007.
The Saskatchewan Roughriders
Saskatchewan Roughriders
The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a Canadian Football League team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. They were founded in 1910. They play their home games at 2940 10th Avenue in Regina, which has been the team's home base for its entire history, even prior to the construction of Mosaic Stadium at Taylor...
signed Johnson on October 5, 2007 to a contract with and placed on their Developmental Squad. He made his CFL debut October 21, 2007 against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats
Hamilton Tiger-Cats
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a Canadian Football League team based in Hamilton, Ontario, founded in 1950 with the merger of the Hamilton Tigers and the Hamilton Wildcats. The Tiger-Cats play their home games at Ivor Wynne Stadium...
.
At the end of February in 2008, he was signed by his hometown Erie RiverRats of the AIFA. In early 2007 he had signed to play with the city's previous AIFA franchise, the now defunct Erie Freeze
Erie Freeze
The Erie Freeze was an American indoor football team based in Erie, Pennsylvania.They were an original member of the American Indoor Football League in 2005, and advanced to the first AIFL Championship Game. When the league was reorganized into the American Indoor Football Association in 2007, they...
, but did not play for the Freeze and decided to play for the Steelers instead.
Johnson was signed by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League in April 2008 and started 17 of 18 games during the 2008 CFL season
2008 CFL season
The 2008 CFL season was the 55th season of modern Canadian professional football. Officially, it was the 51st season for the league. It was also the first CFL season in which all of the league's regular season and post-season games, including the Grey Cup game, were aired on TSN. This meant the CFL...
. He led the Bombers in defensive tackles with 56 and added 3 INTs.
He then returned to RiverRats for the 2009 AIFA season following a contract signing in January 2009. He was still under contract in the CFL however the season starts later in the year which would allow him to play in the AIFA. After only one game, it was found out that there was a clause in Johnson's contract with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers that prevents him from playing with any other team. With that, he returned to Winnipeg.
The 2011 Winnipeg Blue Bombers season
2011 Winnipeg Blue Bombers season
The 2011 Winnipeg Blue Bombers season will be the 54th season for the team in the Canadian Football League and their 79th overall. The Blue Bombers finished in 1st place in the East division with a 10–8 record. The team clinched their first playoff berth since 2008 on October 7th, 2011 after a...
proved to be a successful one for Johnson, helping to lead the Bombers to their first division title in ten years. He was part of a noteworthy Bombers' defence that had self-titled itself 'Swaggerville' and was named the CFL East Division's most outstanding defensive player. Following this, Johnson was named a CFL East Division all-star for the third consecutive time, as well as being named to his second CFL All-Star team a short time later. Johnson followed this up with an appearance as the first defensive back to win the CFL's Most Outstanding Defensive Player Award. He won the award as a the standout player on a team full of talented defensive backs who led the led the league in fewest passing yards allowed, holding opponents to the lowest pass completion percentage, and led the league with most team interceptions. Johnson accomplished this with teammates such as Jonathan Hefney
Jonathan Hefney
Jonathan Jerrod Hefney is a Canadian Football Defensive Back who is currently playing for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League. He was signed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent in 2008...
, Alex Suber
Alex Suber
Alex Suber is a professional Canadian football defensive back for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League. He was signed by the Blue Bombers as a free agent in the spring of 2010. He played college football at Middle Tennessee State University.-Statistics:-References:...
, and Brandon Stewart
Brandon Stewart
Brandon Stewart is a professional Canadian football defensive back for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League...
.
Statistics
| Regular season | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | Tackles | Stt | Sacks | Int | Yards | Long | TD | Fumbles | Yards | Long | TD | |||
| 2007 2007 CFL season The 2007 CFL season was the 54th season of modern Canadian professional football. Officially, it was the 50th season of the league, and many special events were held to commemorate the event. Regular-season play began on June 28, 2007 at the Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario and concluded on... |
SSK 2007 Saskatchewan Roughriders season The 2007 Saskatchewan Roughriders finished in 2nd place in the West division with a 12–6–0 record, which was their highest finish since 1988 when they also finished 2nd... |
9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2008 2008 CFL season The 2008 CFL season was the 55th season of modern Canadian professional football. Officially, it was the 51st season for the league. It was also the first CFL season in which all of the league's regular season and post-season games, including the Grey Cup game, were aired on TSN. This meant the CFL... |
WPG 2008 Winnipeg Blue Bombers season The Winnipeg Blue Bombers attempted to win their 11th Grey Cup championship, but they lost in the Eastern Semi-Final game against the Edmonton Eskimos, who crossed over from the West.-CFL Draft:... |
57 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 80 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2009 2009 CFL season The 2009 CFL season was the 56th season of modern professional Canadian football. Officially, it was the 52nd season of the Canadian Football League. The Montreal Alouettes won the 97th Grey Cup on November 29 with a last second 28–27 win over the Saskatchewan Roughriders... |
WPG 2009 Winnipeg Blue Bombers season The 2009 Winnipeg Blue Bombers season was the 52nd season for the team in the Canadian Football League and their 77th overall. The Blue Bombers were in the playoff hunt until the last game of the season, at home, against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, but lost the game and failed to qualify for the... |
75 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 73 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2010 2010 CFL season The 2010 CFL season is the 57th season of modern Canadian professional football. Officially, it is the 53rd season of the league. Edmonton is scheduled to host the 98th Grey Cup on November 28... |
WPG 2010 Winnipeg Blue Bombers season The 2010 Winnipeg Blue Bombers season was the 53rd season for the team in the Canadian Football League and their 78th overall. The Blue Bombers finished the year in 4th place in the East division with a 4–14 record and failed to make the playoffs... |
62 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 55 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2011 2011 CFL season The 2011 CFL season was the 58th season of modern Canadian professional football. Officially, it was the 54th season of the league. The complete schedule was released on February 18 and featured the defending Grey Cup champion Montreal Alouettes opening the season against the visiting BC Lions on... |
WPG 2011 Winnipeg Blue Bombers season The 2011 Winnipeg Blue Bombers season will be the 54th season for the team in the Canadian Football League and their 79th overall. The Blue Bombers finished in 1st place in the East division with a 10–8 record. The team clinched their first playoff berth since 2008 on October 7th, 2011 after a... |
55 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 67 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| SSK Saskatchewan Roughriders The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a Canadian Football League team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. They were founded in 1910. They play their home games at 2940 10th Avenue in Regina, which has been the team's home base for its entire history, even prior to the construction of Mosaic Stadium at Taylor... totals |
9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| WPG Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. They are currently members of the East Division of the Canadian Football League . They play their home games at Canad Inns Stadium, and plan to move to a new stadium for the 2012 season.The Blue Bombers were founded... totals |
247 | 5 | 0 | 21 | 0 | 80 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| CFL Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football.... totals |
258 | 5 | 0 | 21 | 0 | 80 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||