Tag: Danny Johnson

9 players the Commanders should re-sign to the practice squad

How many of the players the Commanders released will re-sign to the practice squad? Here are nine they should bring back.

The Washington Commanders finalized their initial 53-man roster on Tuesday with some mild surprises. Washington didn’t cut any former stars or high draft picks, but the Commanders left some positions a bit thin on the initial roster.

Not to worry, says head coach Ron Rivera, who said Tuesday, “we are not done.”

While the Commanders will likely be monitoring the waiver wire and inquiring about potential trades to upgrade the roster main roster, they will also be busy filling out their 16-man practice squad.

The Commanders cut 25 players on Tuesday. Last season, Washington’s initial practice squad was made up primarily of players it released and could follow the same theme in 2022. After all, keeping players familiar with your system, who have spent the offseason and training camp practicing with your team, makes sense.

Here are nine recently released players who the Commanders should re-sign to the practice squad if they clear waivers.

 

WATCH: Commanders’ CB Danny Johnson’s one-handed interception in practice

Washington cornerback Danny Johnson with an impressive interception during Tuesday’s practice.

The Washington Commanders were back in pads for another competitive practice on Tuesday. It was a good day for some receivers, such as Jahan Dotson and Terry McLaurin, but overall, it was another impressive effort by Washington’s defense.

And one of the most impressive plays in camp occurred on Tuesday when cornerback Danny Johnson went up high for a one-handed interception on a pass intended for wide receiver Dax Milne during red-zone drills.

Check it out:

Washington’s top three cornerbacks spots are locked up with Kendall Fuller, Benjamin St-Juste and William Jackson III. Johnson appears to have the fourth spot locked up.

Entering his fifth season in the NFL — all with Washington — Johnson is coming off his best season as a pro in 2021.

The Commanders face the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 2 of the preseason on Saturday.

Commanders re-sign cornerback Danny Johnson

The Washington Commanders re-signed cornerback Danny Johnson Wednesday.

A key member of Washington’s secondary will return in 2022 as cornerback Danny Johnson re-signed with the Commanders Wednesday.

The terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The 5-foot-9, 190-pound Johnson, 26, entered the NFL in 2018 as an undrafted free agent from Southern. He has spent all four years with Washington, appearing in 42 career games, making four starts.

Johnson appeared in 14 games as a rookie, recording 14 tackles. In 2019, Johnson played in just two games — both starts. Johnson was Washington’s primary kickoff returner in 2020, averaging 22 yards per return.

Johnson was released during Washington’s final cuts last summer but signed to the practice squad the following day. After multiple injuries, Washington activated Johnson to the main roster for the remainder of the season.

In 12 games, Johnson recorded 21 tackles. While Johnson is no star, he played the best football of his career last season when the Commanders had injuries to every cornerback except Kendall Fuller. Johnson played well in the slot at times.

Ron Rivera concerned about Washington’s cornerback depth against Eagles

Ron Rivera acknowledges concerns about Washington’s cornerback depth Sunday vs. Eagles.

The Washington Football Team could be in some trouble heading into their Week 17 game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Starting cornerback William Jackson III is out with a calf injury, the second consecutive game he has missed.

Fortunately for Washington, Kendall Fuller is back. Fuller missed the Week 15 game against the Eagles due to COVID-19. However, outside of Fuller and Danny Johnson, Washington has depth issues against a team that finished with over 500 yards of total offense against them only two weeks ago.

One of Washington’s corners, Darryl Roberts, is currently on the reserve/COVID-19 list. Washington could elevate veteran D.J. Hayden from the practice squad for Sunday’s game.

Considering Washington’s cornerback depth at the beginning of the season, it’s remarkable it heads into Week 17 with only two of the original six cornerbacks healthy: Fuller and Troy Apke, who plays almost exclusively on special teams.

Torry McTyer and Benjamin St-Juste were lost for the season, Roberts is on the COVID list, and Jackson will miss his fourth game of the season. Johnson was elevated from the practice squad and has played well for Washington.

Washington coach Ron Rivera spoke to the media Friday and acknowledged concerns about his team’s depth at cornerback.

“Well, it’s very thin right now,” Rivera said about cornerback. “We’re a little concerned obviously, just hoping that we can keep everybody healthy through this weekend, and we’ll get those guys back next week, and we’ll go from there. But, it is a little precarious.”

Rivera did express confidence in Hayden, a former first-round pick and nine-year NFL veteran.

“You see a lot of the savvy vet come into play,” Rivera said of Hayden. “The way he goes through his progressions as a corner and the techniques he uses, you can see that he’s a veteran guy that knows how to play certain things.”

It’s good Rivera likes what he sees from Hayden because it’s very likely he’ll need to play a significant number of snaps Sunday.

 

 

Washington places rookie cornerback Benjamin St-Juste on IR

Washington places rookie cornerback Benjamin St-Juste on IR.

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Washington had high expectations for rookie cornerback Benjamin St-Juste ahead of this season. Through the first half of the season, St-Juste saw a lot of action on defense before the bye week in Week 9.

On Thursday, Washington placed St-Juste on injured reserve after going back on the injury list this week with a concussion. St-Juste first appeared on the injury report in Week 4 with a concussion, and he missed that week’s game against the Falcons.

St-Juste also missed the Week 10 game against the Buccaneers.

Could his season now be over? It’s unknown if St-Juste was placed on IR with a designation to return, but it would be wise to end his season now since he is battling concussion issues. You can never be too safe.

While it’s disappointing to lose St-Juste, Washington has received much better play from its cornerbacks in recent weeks. William Jackson III has resembled the player Washington expected when it signed him in the offseason, and Kendall Fuller has rounded back into form since just before the bye week.

Perhaps the biggest hero in Washington’s secondary is Danny Johnson. The veteran was released before the season and re-signed to the practice squad. He was signed to the active roster on Oct. 5 and has remained a regular since then.

Johnson has played inside, while Fuller and Jackson played outside. Johnson tackles well and is never out of position. He’s quietly been instrumental in Washington’s defensive turnaround.

St-Juste has appeared in nine games this season but has not played on the defensive side of the ball since Week 8.

Washington re-signs CB Danny Johnson and LB Jared Norris

Washington made a couple of depth signings on Tuesday, bringing back both CB Danny Johnson and LB Jared Norris.

They aren’t the big-named free-agent signings that we have grown accustomed to in D.C., but the Washington Football Team made a solid move to retain both CB Danny Johnson and LB Jared Norris on Tuesday afternoon, keeping them around to provide depth on the defense in 2021.

We don’t yet know the terms of both contracts, but the two players will do well to round out the defensive roster for Washington.

Johnson has provided some rotational minutes for Washington on the defense, but he is the primary kick returner and has been reliable in that spot. Norris game to the team in 2020 and played mostly special teams, but he could potentially move up the LB depth chart if he continues to perform well.

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Washington re-signs CB Danny Johnson to one-year contract

With the top of the cornerback depth chart locked down, Washington re-signed Danny Johnson to provide some depth at the position.

It may not be as groundbreaking of a signing as the others we’ve seen over the past three days, but the Washington Football Team made a move to add some depth to their defensive secondary by keeping cornerback Danny Johnson around for the 2021 season.

Johnson splayed sparingly in 2020, only acting as a special teams returner where he averaged 22 yards per return on 26 attempts. However, in the past, the team has relied on him to provide some relief at the CB position, where he has two passes defended and 19 total tackles over the past three years.

We will see how much Johnson gets into the rotation this year behind Kendall Fuller and William Jackson III, but he should be in the mix alongside Jimmy Moreland.

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Redskins send Quinton Dunbar and Danny Johnson to injured reserve

The Redskins have signed two more cornerbacks after sending both Quinton Dunbar and Danny Johnson to the IR this week.

It comes as no surprise that the Washington Redskins have added more players to the injured reserve, with cornerbacks Quinton Dunbar and Danny Johnson seeing their seasons come to an end one week short of the finish line.

Dunbar missed this past week’s game against the New York Giants due to injury, and Johnson broke his hand during the game. With a highly banged-up secondary, the Redskins trotted out a trio of young defensive backs to try and shore up the defense, but it didn’t work.

Giants rookie quarterback had a field day, throwing for five touchdowns and well over 300 yards in a 41-35 overtime victory. Now, with Dunbar and Johnson done for the year, the Redskins have signed CB Breon Borders and CB Dee Delaney to the team — two more defensive backs who will likely play ahead of a healthy and well-paid Josh Norman this week.

We’ll see if it works out better this time.

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