Film Room: WR Jordan Johnson
Notre Dame has been recruiting St. Louis (Mo.) De Smet standout wide receiver Jordan Johnson for over a year. He’s been a top target – if not the top target – at wide receiver the entire time. The Fighting Irish coaches are looking to add more impact players on offense, and Johnson is absolutely that kind of player.
The Spartans star finished the 2018 season with 28 receptions for 721 yards and nine touchdowns. His 25.8 yards per catch average shows a player with big-play ability, and the film backs that up.
Johnson is ranked by Rivals as the No. 59 player in the country and the top player in the state of Missouri. He has earned offers from Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State, Florida, Texas, Michigan, Auburn, Penn State, Tennessee, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Mississippi State, Oregon, Syracuse, Purdue, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Kansas State, Kentucky, Iowa State, Minnesota, Indiana, Kansas and Illinois.
BGI GRADE: 4.5 (Top 50 prospect)
UPSIDE GRADE: 5.0
Johnson doesn’t have elite size by any stretch, but he has more than enough size to play any receiver position on the field. He has well above average height (listed between 6-1 and 6-2), above average length and his specific receiver skills allow him to play like a longer player. Johnson is a bit on the thin side, but he has an athletic and muscular frame that has room to add more good weight and strength.
Despite being just above 180 pounds, Johnson is a physical football player when he wants to be. At times he’ll jog off the line in the run game, but when he sets his mind on dominating his opponent in the run game he does. If his effort becomes more consistent, his ability to dominate in the run game will shine through, which adds to his value. A wide receiver that can be impactful without having to touch the ball is special, and that plays into his upside grade.
Athletically there is a lot to like about Johnson’s game. His hips aren’t tight, but they aren’t fluid either. Outside of that his athletic traits are all top notch. Johnson shows a strong burst off the line, and when his technique is right he can explode off the line and quickly get on corners. His second gear is really outstanding, and those two traits make him a dangerous vertical player.
Johnson has impressive foot quickness and agility, which combines nicely with his balance and body control to give him a borderline elite athletic grade. He flashes top-level suddenness, which plays into his upside grade, but that will be discussed more in the route running portion of this breakdown.
Johnson needs a lot of work as a route runner relative to what he needs to do at the college level, but his natural feel for it is top notch. There are some things he does exceptionally well and is advanced for his age, and with some next level coaching his game is going to explode because Johnson will be able to combine strong athletic skills with a game that is extremely sound.
The first area where I’d like to see Johnson improve is to adjust his pre-snap stance. He’s a bit heavy footed with his lead foot and is a bit stiff in his stance, which slows down his first couple steps. Once he gets into good running form he takes off and eats up the cushion of his defender, and Johnson understands the importance of attacking the leverage of the defender.
What really stands out about Johnson is his footwork on the top ends of his routes:
A lot of young wideouts tend to lean back and use their hands to slow down when they get to the top of their route, but you can see in the above clip that Johnson understands its his feet and hips that are the primary tools for efficient and quick cuts. I’d like to see him lean forward just a tad more, but he does a really good job sinking his hips in this clip and he gets out of his break quickly.
I’ve seen Johnson do this several times on out cuts and in cuts, and this will suit him well in college because his quarterback will get the ball on him quicker, and his ability to quickly get into and out of cuts will allow him to have the separation to catch the ball and then pick up yards after the catch.
When his footwork is right he snaps his speed outs quite well, and I love how he uses body language to lean defenders away from where he wants to cut on vertical routes.
Johnson also shows a good feel against the zone:
On this route he does a good job recognizing the inside traffic and getting behind it. But what he does quite well on this clip is once he clears the linebacker he immediately works back downhill, which creates even more separation between him and the safeties coming behind him.
Where Johnson needs the most work is at the line against press. He’s strong and athletic enough to dominate at the prep level, but against higher-end corners he’ll struggle. He doesn’t lack the tools to be effective against the press, but his footwork doesn’t really do anything to influence the cornerback and he doesn’t use his hands well to win at the line.
This is something that a good wide receivers coach can quickly work out of him, so it doesn’t really drag his technique grade down all that much.
Johnson has the trifecta of talent needed for an impact wide receiver. He has good size, he’s a top-notch athlete and his pass catching skills are impressive. Johnson has literally strong hands, which allows him to make some really difficult catches, especially down the field. Johnson attacks the football well once he gets out of routes and he extends his hands well to the football. The only time I’ve seen Johnson body catch is when it is appropriate to do so.
Johnson is a vertical threat due to his speed and athletic skills, but just as important he tracks the deep ball extremely well, which allows him to maximize his speed when the ball is in the air. This is partly what made Will Fuller so dominant at Notre Dame. Not only could he run, but he didn’t have to slow down in order to find and play the football. Johnson does that, and it’s due to his instincts and confidence as a pass catcher.
The De Smet standout is an impressive pass catcher off the ground as well:
You see all his positive leaping skills here. Johnson gets off the ground quickly, his timing is excellent and he high points the football. He gets up and gets down before the defensive back has any idea what is happening. Everything he does when he attacks the football is efficient and fast, which makes it extremely hard for defenders to play his eyes, hands or body when he has a step on them. These are very important traits for an elite pass catcher.
Johnson has good body control and balance, traits that are also important for being an effective one-on-one pass catcher.
While I wouldn’t call Johnson a dominant player with the ball in his hands, but he can make plays after the catch. His foot quickness, agility and balance allow him to make quick and sudden moves, and he shows decent vision. I like the fact that he will make cuts and then immediately look to get upfield after he makes a move.
NOTRE DAME FIT
Notre Dame loves versatile wide receivers, and Johnson can play all three wide receiver positions in offensive coordinator Chip Long’s system. The position where he fits best is at the W position, which is the boundary spot and is where Notre Dame’s leading receiver has lined up the last two seasons.
Johnson has the vertical speed that Long and wide receivers coach DelVaughn Alexander covet at the position. He can stretch the field as a route runner, he tracks the deep ball well and he’s a legitimate home run threat thanks to his combination of athletic skills and route running potential.
He isn’t a dynamic after-the-catch player, which is partly why the W and Z positions are better for him than the X position. But him at W has more to do with what he does well. Notre Dame needs a player that can win one-on-one battles with his body, with his route running, with his ball skills and with his athletic traits. The boundary receiver has to be able to go toe-to-toe against what is often the opponent’s best cover player, and Johnson projects to be able to do all those things at a very high level.
Johnson is a player that would add skills to the offense that Long and Alexander covet, but also skills that the offense doesn’t have as much of, at least not in a player with his size and strength.
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