Pats Pulpit
D’Ernest Johnson reverted to the New England Patriots’ practice squad on Monday after serving as a standard elevation against the Atlanta Falcons.
The 24-23 win at Gillette Stadium marked the 97th game of the running back’s NFL career.
Johnson, 29, participated in three practices before getting the call-up for Sunday. The Wednesday signing was part of an active backfield depth chart that went without starter Rhamondre Stevenson due to a toe injury. Behind rookie TreVeyon Henderson and 53-man roster promotion Terrell Jennings, who combined for 30 touches, 131 yards and one touchdown on offense, he worked on special teams.
Wearing No. 34, Johnson saw five snaps there in his Patriots debut. The veteran stood back deep for kickoff returns, leading and blocking for wide receiver Efton Chism III on returns of 19, 31 and 32 yards.
After going undrafted out of South Florida in 2018, Johnson entered the NFL ranks with the Cleveland Browns one spring later. The former Orlando Apollo did so as the Alliance of American Football ceased operations. He went on to be named FedEx Ground Player of the Week while in the AFC North in 2021.
Stops with the Jacksonville Jaguars and Baltimore Ravens followed. He then served as an elevation for the Arizona Cardinals in October before being released from the practice squad.
Johnson’s time in the league includes 920 snaps on offense and 946 snaps on special teams. The 5-foot-10, 208-pounder stands with 215 rushes for 989 yards and 53 receptions for 467 yards. While making three starts and scoring three touchdowns, he has also averaged 23.4 yards per kick return and had a hand in 16 tackles.
Fellow running backs Jonathan Ward and Rushawn Baker recently signed to the practice squad in Foxborough.
“Again, it’s exciting,” Patriots position coach Tony Dews told reporters last week. “It’s almost like Christmas Day. You wake up, you got all these shiny new toys, right? So, they’re all great guys.”
