Calvin Johnson Jr. (born September 29, 1985) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons with the Detroit Lions. Nicknamed "Megatron" after the Transformers character of the same name, he is regarded as one of the greatest wide receivers of all time. Johnson played college football for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, winning the Fred Biletnikoff Award and Paul Warfield Trophy in 2006. He was selected by the Lions second overall in the 2007 NFL draft.
Johnson was noted for having a rare combination of size (6 ft 5 in and 239 lbs), catching ability, speed (40-yard dash in 4.35 seconds), strength, leaping ability, and body control. In 2012, he set the NFL season record for receiving yards. Johnson is also tied with Michael Irvin for 100-yard games in a season, tied with Adam Thielen for consecutive 100-yard games, and holds the record for consecutive games with 10 or more receptions. He appeared in six consecutive Pro Bowls from 2010 to 2015 and received three consecutive first-team All-Pro selections from 2011 to 2013.
While still regarded as being in his prime, Johnson retired after the 2015 season, citing a loss of passion for the game due to health concerns and the Lions' lack of overall success during his career. He was inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2021 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 2018.
Early life Johnson was born to Calvin Johnson Sr. and Arica Johnson on September 29, 1985, in Tyrone, Georgia. Johnson's mother holds a Doctor of Education. Johnson's parents stressed education in his childhood, forbidding him from playing sports if he didn't receive As and Bs in school.
Johnson was 6 feet tall in middle school, and 6 feet 4 inches as a sophomore in high school. He attended Sandy Creek High School in Tyrone, Georgia, and was a letterman in football and a baseball standout. In football, he was a three-year starter as a wide receiver for the Patriots football team. As a sophomore, he made 34 receptions for 646 yards and 10 touchdowns. As a junior, Johnson caught 40 passes for 736 yards and eight touchdowns. His #81 was retired on October 22, 2010.
Johnson was rated among the nation's top 10 wide receivers and top 100 players by virtually every recruiting analyst. He was tabbed the No. 4 wide receiver and No. 15 player in the nation by TheInsiders.com, and named to the Super Southern 100 by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Rivals 100 by Rivals.com, TheInsiders.com Hot 100, the SuperPrep All-America 275, and the Prep Star Top 100 Dream Team.
Johnson was also rated as the best player in Georgia, No. 12 in the Southeast and No. 37 in the nation by Rivals.com, the No. 7 wide receiver in the nation by SuperPrep, and first-team all-state selection (Class AAAA) by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Finally, he was tabbed to the AJC's preseason Super 11. By the time he was a junior, he was ranked as within the top 10 wide receivers and the top 100 players in the nation by almost every writer. As a senior, Johnson finished as runner-up for Georgia 4A Division Player of the Year to future NFL head coach Sean McVay, then a star quarterback for Marist.
College career
Johnson attended the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he played for head coach Chan Gailey's Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team from 2004 to 2006. Despite Georgia Tech being interested in his playing both football and baseball, Johnson's mother refused to allow Johnson to play both sports after determining that the year-round athletic schedule would be too demanding.
As a freshman in 2004, Johnson was an immediate contributor. He made his collegiate debut against Samford and had two receptions for 45 receiving yards in the 28–7 victory. In the following game, against Clemson, he had eight receptions for 127 receiving yards and three receiving touchdowns in the 28–24 victory. On October 16, against Duke, he had six receptions for 92 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns in the 24–7 victory. On November 13, against Connecticut, he had six receptions for 131 receiving yards in the 30–10 victory. In the next week's game against Virginia, he had five receptions for 108 receiving yards in the 30–10 loss. He ended his freshman campaign against Syracuse in the 2004 Champs Sports Bowl, where he recorded two receptions for 61 receiving yards and a receiving touchdown to go along with a rushing touchdown in the 51–14 victory. Johnson was the Yellow Jackets' leading receiver with 48 catches for 837 receiving yards and seven receiving touchdowns, which were Georgia Tech freshman records. Johnson earned a first-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) selection. He was named ACC Rookie of the Year.
Johnson started the 2005 season with four receptions for 66 receiving yards and a receiving touchdown in a 23–14 victory over Auburn. In the next game, he had six receptions for 114 receiving yards in a 27–21 victory over North Carolina. The game featured Georgia Tech having two 100-yard receivers in the same game for the sixth time in school history, Johnson and Damarius Bilbo, who had 131. On September 24, against Virginia Tech, he had five receptions for 123 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown in the 51–7 loss. In the following game, against North Carolina State, he recorded a collegiate career-best ten receptions for 130 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown in the 17–14 loss. He earned first-team All-American honors for the 2005 season. He also earned All-ACC honors for the second straight year and was a semifinalist for the Fred Biletnikoff Award. He led the team with 54 catches for 888 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns.
Johnson was named a team captain going into his junior season. He entered his 2006 season in the running for the Biletnikoff Award and Heisman Trophy. Although Johnson finished tenth in the Heisman voting, he won the Biletnikoff as the season's outstanding college football receiver. He started the season with seven receptions for 111 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown in the 14–10 loss to Notre Dame. In the following game, he had four receptions for 26 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns in the 38–6 victory over Samford. Against the West Virginia Mountaineers in the Toyota Gator Bowl, Johnson had nine catches for a collegiate-career best 186 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns, albeit in a 38–35 loss. In the game, he passed Jonathan Smith for the school record for receiving yards in a single season and also moved past Kelly Campbell to be the school's all-time leader in receiving yards for a career. In addition, Johnson's 186 receiving yards set a school record for receiving yards in a bowl game. Johnson was honored as the ACC Player of the Year, was a first-team All-ACC selection for the third consecutive year, and was recognized as a unanimous All-American. Overall, Johnson tallied 1,202 receiving yards on 76 catches. Johnson's 15 receiving touchdowns were a new Georgia Tech single-season record. In his collegiate career, Johnson made a case for being the greatest Georgia Tech player of all time. Johnson had 178 receptions for 2,927 yards and 28 touchdowns during his time with the Yellow Jackets. He ranks first in school history in career receiving yards, second in receptions, first in touchdown receptions, and first in career 100-yard receiving games with 13.
Academic activities During the summer of 2006, Johnson, who majored in management with a background in building construction, was given the option of working on either constructing environmentally friendly luxury condos, or a project building solar latrines to improve sanitation in Bolivia. Johnson chose the latter, as he wanted to help the less fortunate. The "solar latrines" use the sun's rays to safely transform bacteria-laden waste into fertilizer.
Legacy In 2016, Johnson was named to the Georgia Tech Sports Hall of Fame. He was selected for induction to the College Football Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. He was part of the Class of 2018.
Professional career Pre-draft
Johnson was SI.com's Midseason 2007 NFL draft Projection #1 pick, though Johnson had stated that he intended to earn his degree from Georgia Tech. On January 8, 2007, Johnson declared himself eligible for the NFL Draft, bypassing his senior season at Georgia Tech. He was regarded as the best athlete to come out of the draft and was the #1 player on most draft boards. Johnson was said by ESPN to be able to be productive as a rookie, much like receiver Randy Moss. In a mid-February workout with speed and conditioning coach Mark Pearsall, Johnson clocked a 4.33-second 40-yard dash, recorded an 11-foot standing broad jump, and had a vertical leap of 43 inches.
Johnson surprised many when he weighed in at 239 pounds at the combine although he claims that this season he played "at about 235 and I got up to 238" and that his weight was not a problem. Johnson ran a 4.35 and wowed scouts with his jump drill results, his receiving skills, and his 11 ft 7 in (3.53 m) broad jump, which was the "best broad jump I can ever remember an NFL prospect having," according to Gil Brandt. Johnson is one of only three players (Matt Jones and Dont'e Thornton Jr.) 6-foot-5 or taller, regardless of position, to run a 40-yard dash in under 4.40 seconds at the combine since 2005.
Johnson was selected by the Detroit Lions in the first round as the second pick overall in the 2007 NFL draft. This is the highest a Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket has ever been drafted. The Lions were expected to trade Johnson, most likely to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but the team announced that they were keeping him. The next day, the Detroit Tigers invited him to throw out the ceremonial first pitch.
2007 season
Johnson attended Reebok's NFL Rookie Premiere in Los Angeles. The Lions, being told by the league that Johnson would have to skip the minicamp to attend, rescheduled the camp to accommodate Johnson. On August 3, 2007, Johnson signed a six-year deal with the Detroit Lions after holding out for eight days, and passed his physical in time to be on the field for the start of that morning's practice. He was represented by agent James "Bus" Cook. The contract was worth up to , with in guaranteed money, making Johnson the highest-paid player in Lions history (since passed by quarterback Matthew Stafford and defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh) and the highest-paid receiver (in guaranteed money) in the NFL.
Although he did not start the game, Johnson had an impressive NFL debut on Sunday, September 9, 2007, catching four passes for 70 yards and his first career touchdown in Detroit's 36–21 win over the Oakland Raiders. Alt URL He sustained a lower back injury after making a catch over two Philadelphia Eagles defenders on September 23, 2007. He scored his first and only professional rushing touchdown against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on October 21, 2007, on a 32-yard reverse play in the 23–16 victory. Fellow teammate and wide receiver Roy Williams nicknamed Johnson "Megatron", due to his large hands being similar to that of the towering Decepticon. The nickname caught on well with fans. Williams later changed the nickname to "Bolt" after Jamaican sprinting phenom Usain Bolt, comparing the two athletes' similar height and running abilities. Johnson finished the 2007 season with 48 receptions for 756 yards and five total touchdowns. He was named to the NFL All-Rookie Team.