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For most defenses, the middle linebacker relays play calls from the defensive coordinator to the other 10 players on the field. That was true for the Rams for several years, whether it was Alec Ogletree or more recently, Cory Littleton.
But things changed this year after Littleton’s departure in free agency. Rather than putting the green dot on Micah Kiser’s helmet and allowing him to hear the play calls from Brandon Staley, the Rams gave it to John Johnson.
It’s still early, but Staley couldn’t be happier with the team’s choice to give Johnson an earpiece in his helmet.
“I know I’ve been telling you guys, but I love talking to John Johnson on that headset,” Staley told reporters this week. “All right, it gives me so much confidence knowing that he’s on the other end of that line and he’s so steady, he’s so calm. He’s such a competitor, can take the game plan and the way you say it to the guys matters, too. Sometimes it’s coming into the headset, you guys could probably imagine Sean McVay, how he sounds sometimes and me sometimes – sometimes it’s translating that with the right spirit, the right emotion, and being able to say things the right way and give that last extra reminder to the guys. He’s just been awesome. I can tell you that I’m surprised and that would not be the truth because he’s just, he’s the best and has given us a big lift in that role.”
It’s not unprecedented for a defense to have its safety as the signal-caller, but it’s not the most common choice. That doesn’t mean it’s the wrong one, though. Johnson never comes off the field, which is the most important aspect when picking a guy to wear the headset. He and Jalen Ramsey are the only Rams defenders who have yet to miss a snap, with Kiser missing 34 due to injury.
But even before the season began, the Rams knew Johnson would never come off the field – which wasn’t as certain with regards to the linebacker position.
“You’ve got to go with what you feel like, who you feel like is best to run the show for your team,” Staley said. “The way we play, there was some things with the linebacker situations we didn’t know exactly, is one linebacker going to be the game all the time? So, I think that we knew John Johnson is going to be in the game the whole time and I think that when you meet this guy, he’s got all the qualities that you could ever want in a signal-caller.”
Johnson has been a vocal leader for several years now, quickly emerging as a starter in his rookie year. He’s only gotten better since then and has become one of the better safeties in football – even if he’s an underrated one.
The Rams are fortunate to have him in their secondary, though he may not be in L.A. much longer. Johnson’s rookie deal will expire next offseason, making him a free agent unless the Rams sign him to an extension first.
After extending Ramsey, Cooper Kupp and Robert Woods already, Johnson may be the odd man out. But a great 2020 season will go a long way toward him cashing in next March.