New Orleans Saints sign DB Lonnie Johnson Jr. to one-year deal
Lonnie Johnson Jr. is headed to the Big Easy.
After spending the 2022 season with the Tennessee Titans, the former Kentucky football defensive back has agreed to a one-year contract with the New Orleans Saints. The deal was officially announced on Tuesday afternoon following rumors beginning on Monday that Johnson was on the verge of landing with the Saints.
Johnson, who spent two seasons at Kentucky from 2017-18, appeared in 12 games for the Titans last season, registering nine tackles, seven of them solo. He was a former second-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft by the Houston Texans, where he spent his first three seasons before joining the Titans in 2022. Now, he’ll continue his career in New Orleans.
“This team has a great history and a winning culture, so it was like there was no other option for me,” Johnson said of signing with the Saints, according to NOLA.com. “I was like, let me just go ahead and get here and become a Saint as soon as possible.”
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Johnson, 27, took an unusual path to reach the NFL.
He began his college career at San Bernardino Valley College despite originally committing to Ohio State. From there, Johnson attended Garden City Community College (where former Wildcat QB Terry Wilson also played before his time at UK) for two seasons, took a year off in 2016, then transferred to Kentucky where he registered 64 tackles, 3.0 TFL, one sack, 12 pass breakups, two blocked kicks, one interception, and one forced fumble. Johnson started in 18 of his 26 games as a Wildcat before heading off to the NFL.
Since turning pro, Johnson has played in 56 games (including 19 starts) across four seasons, totaling 183 career tackles (136 solo), three interceptions, and 13 pass deflections. He suffered an injury near the end of the 2022 season that put him on the Injured Reserved list, but will look to be ready for a return in Week 1 this fall.
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