Cincinnati Bengals The
Cincinnati Bengals chose Johnson in the second round of the
2001 NFL draft with the 36th overall pick.
2001 season In Johnson's rookie year, he saw moderate playing time in a wide receiver room headlined by Peter Warrick and Darney Scott as well. He scored his first NFL touchdown in Week 3 against the San Diego Chargers on an eight-yard reception. He recorded 28 receptions for 329 yards and one touchdown in the 2001 season.
2002 season In Week 10 of the 2002 season, Johnson had his first 100-yard game with seven receptions for 110 yards and one touchdown in the 38–27 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. In Week 12, in a 29–21 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, he had seven receptions for 152 yards. He had five games going over 100 receiving yards in the 2002 season as the Bengals went 2–14. In the 2002 season, Johnson had 69 receptions for 1,166 receiving yards and five receiving touchdowns.
2003 season In Week 2 of the 2003 season, Johnson had eight receptions for 131 yards against the Oakland Raiders. In Week 4, a 21–14 win over the Cleveland Browns, he had his first multi-touchdown game as a professional. In Week 12, he had ten receptions for 107 and three touchdowns in a 34–27 win over the San Diego Chargers. In the 2003 season, he broke the Bengals franchise record formerly held by Carl Pickens by recording 1,355 receiving yards on 90 receptions to go with 10 touchdowns as the Bengals improved to 8–8. He was named as a Pro Bowler for the first time.
2004 season In Week 7 of the 2004 season, he had seven receptions for 149 yards and one touchdown in the 23–10 victory over the Denver Broncos. In Week 13, a 27–26 win over the Baltimore Ravens, he had ten receptions for 161 yards and two touchdowns. In the 2004 season, he caught 95 passes for nine touchdowns and 1,274 yards, including 117 receiving yards in a 58–48 win against the
Cleveland Browns. He earned Pro Bowl honors for the second consecutive season.
2005 season In Week 2 of the 2005 season, Johnson had seven receptions for 139 yards and one touchdown in the 37–8 win over the Minnesota Vikings. In Week 6, in a 31–23 win over the Tennessee Titans, he had eight receptions for 135 yards and one touchdown. In Week 11, against the Indianapolis Colts, he had eight receptions for 189 yards and one touchdown in the 45–37 loss to the Colts. He surpassed his franchise record in 2005, recording 1,432 yards on 97 receptions for nine touchdowns. He led the
AFC in receiving yards. He made the Pro Bowl for the third consecutive season. He earned first team All Pro honors for the first time.
The List During the
2005 NFL season, Johnson announced that he would keep a checklist, titled ''who Covered 85 in '05'', that would evaluate the
defensive backs who successfully managed to cover him. On November 2, 2005,
Marvin Lewis, the Bengals'
head coach, replaced Johnson's list with another one titled,
Did 85 do everything he could to lead his team to victory 11-6-05. The list, an obvious parody of the original, asked several questions regarding Johnson's performance both on and off the field. According to the Bengals' official website, the list was aimed to antagonize their divisional rival, the
Baltimore Ravens, whom the Bengals would play in four days. Johnson was not pleased with the new list, as he had developed a
superstitious faith in the older list. He had a stellar performance during the game, prompting the return of the original list. In 2007,
Degree and
Yahoo! created an online version of his checklist. The checklist allowed fans to vote for which NFL
quarterback Johnson would like to play catch with the most. Every vote helped him raise money for his charity project,
"Feed the Children".
2006 season On April 20, 2006, Johnson signed an extension to his contract through 2011. During the first half of the
2006 season, Johnson saw little activity. After being bogged down by an early injury, his productivity endured a sharp decline. During the first eight weeks of the 2006 season, Johnson caught two touchdown passes, while amassing 483 yards. However, after shaving his
Mohawk and changing his mentality, he had a breakout game in a losing effort against the
San Diego Chargers. Johnson accumulated 260 receiving yards and scored two touchdowns, which broke the previous Bengals record for most receiving yards in a game. He went on to amass 190 receiving yards and three touchdowns in a 31–16 win over the
New Orleans Saints in the following week. This gave Johnson a then NFL record of 450 receiving yards in back-to-back games (to be surpassed by
Josh Gordon of the
Cleveland Browns, who amassed 498 yards in consecutive games in 2013), breaking the previous record of 448 set by
San Francisco 49ers receiver
John Taylor in 1989. In the following week, he gained 123 yards receiving, breaking the three-game receiving record since the
NFL–AFL merger in 1970 and coming within 40 yards of the all-time record. Johnson finished the 2006 season with 87 receptions for a league leading 1,369 yards and seven touchdowns. He was the first Bengal ever to lead the NFL in receiving yards. Johnson and Houshmandzadeh also became the first Bengals teammates to each amass over 1,000 receiving yards in the same season. He earned Pro Bowl honors for the fourth consecutive season and was first team All-Pro for the second consecutive season. In addition to being one of the most productive receivers in the NFL, Johnson was also one of the most popular in balloting for the
Pro Bowl. In the fan voting for the
2006 game, he finished first in votes for wide receivers, and fourth overall with 987,650 total votes. Johnson earned nationwide attention for his flamboyant attitude, which was often seen during his infamous
end zone celebrations after catching
touchdown passes. In a list released in August 2006 by
Fox Sports listing the top 10 showboats in professional sports, Johnson topped the list.
2007 season In the first game of the season, on
Monday Night Football against the
Baltimore Ravens, Johnson scored the game's first touchdown on a 39-yard pass from
Carson Palmer. Following the touchdown, he grabbed a jacket that resembles the
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees' jacket that said, "Future H.O.F. 20??" Johnson finished the game with five receptions for 95 yards and a touchdown. In the next game, against the
Cleveland Browns, he racked up 209 yards on 11 catches for two touchdowns in the 51–45 loss. This gave Johnson a career total of 7,229 receiving yards, breaking the Bengals' franchise record previously held by
Isaac Curtis. The very next game, against the
Seattle Seahawks, he totaled nine receptions for 138 yards as the Bengals lost again. Against the
New York Jets, in which the Bengals won 38–31, Johnson had three receptions for 102 yards and a rush for 15 yards. In the fourth quarter of the Bengals' week-nine loss to the
Buffalo Bills, Johnson was rolled off the field on a stretcher, with a reported head injury. He dove out for a pass, with under a minute left in the 33–21 loss, and then was sandwiched by
Donte Whitner and
Coy Wire. Johnson was reported to be mobile at the hospital. He finished the game with three catches for 48 yards. A
CT scan performed to detect brain injury was negative, and Johnson did not miss any games from the injury. Over his next two games, Johnson did not score any touchdowns or gain more than 86 yards, but he had a recognized performance in a November 25 win over the
Tennessee Titans, catching a career-high 12 passes for 103 yards and three touchdowns. He was named AFC Offensive Player of the Week for his game against the Titans. This gave Johnson over 1,000 receiving yards for the sixth consecutive season, and moved him past
Carl Pickens as the Bengals all-time leader in receptions. By week 15, Johnson and Houshmandzadeh both gained over 1,000 receiving yards for the second year in a row. However, a loss to the
San Francisco 49ers that week ensured the team would finish the year with their first losing season since 2002. In the Bengals' season finale, Johnson had four catches for 131 yards and two touchdowns in a win over the
Miami Dolphins, giving him 93 receptions for 1,440 yards and 8 touchdowns on the season. Johnson's 1,440 yards set a new Bengals' franchise record, breaking his own record of 1,432 in 2005. It was the third time that Johnson finished a season with a new Bengals record for receiving yards. His yardage was third most in the NFL, his receptions were 12th most, and his touchdowns were tied for 15th most in the league. Johnson was passed up for the
2008 Pro Bowl team, which instead selected his teammate
T. J. Houshmandzadeh. Due to injury, however,
Patriots' receiver
Randy Moss was forced to withdraw from the Pro Bowl, and Johnson was selected as his replacement. The selection marked his fifth consecutive
Pro Bowl selection. Johnson and Houshmandzadeh became the first pair of Bengals receivers to make the Pro Bowl in the same year.
2008 season On January 13, 2008, Johnson was a guest on ESPN's
Mike & Mike radio show. During the interview, he addressed how the media and team treated him during the 2007 season, saying, "I was labeled selfish and a cancer, and it hurt...Fingers were pointed at me this year. If the team and the organization wants to further itself (make the playoffs), I think you need to get rid of the problem...It hurt me. To do me that way and not to have my back. Things were said, and nobody came to my defense." However, head coach
Marvin Lewis commented on the issue by saying that the Bengals would not be trading Johnson. "He is a Cincinnati Bengal for quite a while," Lewis said. On February 4, ESPN's
Chris Mortensen reported that Johnson felt betrayed by Lewis and was privately threatening to sit out the 2008 season, though his agent
Drew Rosenhaus denied it. When asked about trade rumors, Johnson said "Call me, Dan," referring to Redskins' owner
Daniel Snyder, On April 22, the
Cincinnati Bengals declined a
Washington Redskins trade for Johnson involving a first round
2008 selection and a
2009 selection. and on
NFL Network's
NFL Total Access, Johnson said he did not want a pay raise from the Bengals, but desired a "change of scenery". Lewis stated he had not spoken to Johnson since the last regular season game, and reiterated his lack of interest in a trade. After several weeks of silence, in April, Johnson again announced he wanted to be traded, and caused a rift with teammates by refusing to attend off-season workout programs and practices. Nine days before the opening of the Bengals' mandatory minicamp on June 12, Johnson told
ESPN The Magazine that "of course I (will be)" attending, confirmed by his agent. After ankle surgery on June 18, Johnson returned to full practice in August. He suffered a partially torn
labrum in the first preseason game on August 17, but decided to play the entire season with the injury. On August 29, Johnson legally changed his last name to Ochocinco. The Bengals began the season 0–8, with
Carson Palmer forced out for the season with an injury incurred early in the campaign and Johnson experiencing his worst statistical season of his career to date. Johnson totaled 11 receptions for 116 yards and a touchdown in the first four games of the season, unable to gain more than 37 yards receiving in any of the contests. Following a dismal performance (three receptions for 43 yards) against the
Dallas Cowboys in a loss, Johnson had consecutive games with 50-yard receiving totals (57 against the
New York Giants and 52 against the
Pittsburgh Steelers). Johnson then had 44 yards on five receptions in a loss to the
Houston Texans. However, the Bengals won their first game of the season, against the
Jacksonville Jaguars, in week 9 by a score of 21–19. In that game, Johnson had two touchdowns, which marked the first multi-touchdown game of the season for Johnson. Johnson finished the season with 53 catches for 540 yards and four touchdowns — his worst statistical season since his rookie campaign.
2009 season Before the start of the 2009 season, the
Philadelphia Eagles and
New York Giants expressed interest in Johnson if he were to be placed on the market after he missed voluntary team offseason workouts. In July 2009, Johnson said that he would use
Twitter during games, but the NFL banned it. In the August 20 preseason game against the
New England Patriots, Johnson took over placekicking duties for the injured
Shayne Graham. He kicked off and made an extra point in the game, which ended up deciding the Bengals' 7–6 win. During the season, Johnson expressed remorse for the developments in the 2008 season and attempted to make it up to the fans in Cincinnati through numerous actions. Many of those involved public appearances (usually involving the publication of his autobiography) and also by inviting Bengals fans to dinner and movie showings through his Twitter account, gatherings for which he picked up the tab. Many of the events were featured on the Bengals' official website. before a game against the
New England Patriots on September 12, 2010. Johnson went on to record his seventh career 1,000 yard season, catching 72 passes for 1,047 yards and nine touchdowns. He finished the season just 48 yards short of the 10,000 career receiving yards milestone and with 62 career touchdown catches, just one short of the franchise record held by
Carl Pickens. On January 15, Johnson was announced as a
Pro Bowl selection to replace Patriots receiver
Wes Welker, who was injured in the final week of the regular season. It was Johnson's sixth Pro Bowl selection, tying
Lemar Parrish for the second highest total in franchise history.
2010 season Johnson opened up the 2010 season with 12 receptions for 159 yards and a touchdown in the Bengals' opening day loss to the
Patriots. In doing so, he tied the franchise record for touchdown catches (which he later surpassed) and became the sixth player in NFL history to amass 10,000 receiving yards with one team. The following week, Johnson became the 30th player in NFL history to surpass 700 career receptions, catching four passes for 44 yards in a 15–10 win. He finished the 2010 season with 67 receptions for 831 yards and four touchdowns.
New England Patriots On July 28, 2011, the
New England Patriots acquired Johnson in a trade with Cincinnati after he restructured a three-year contract for $6.35 million. The Patriots traded two draft picks, a fifth round pick in 2012 and a sixth round pick in 2013. Johnson had statistically the least productive season of his career, catching 15 passes for 276 yards and one touchdown, all career lows. He was inactive for the AFC Championship game against the
Baltimore Ravens after reportedly attending his father's funeral. Johnson played in his first
Super Bowl, catching one pass for 21 yards. His 21-yard reception was the longest pass completion for the Patriots in that Super Bowl. The Patriots lost to the
New York Giants 21–17 in
Super Bowl XLVI. On June 7, 2012, Johnson was released by the Patriots.
Miami Dolphins Johnson, a Miami native, signed with the
Miami Dolphins on June 11, 2012. On July 24, Johnson legally changed his last name from Ochocinco back to Johnson. The Dolphins released Johnson on August 12 following his
arrest the previous night. The meeting in which head coach
Joe Philbin notified Johnson of his release from the Dolphins was shown in the episode of
HBO's
Hard Knocks that originally aired on August 14.
Montreal Alouettes Johnson signed a two-year deal with the
Montreal Alouettes of the
Canadian Football League on April 17, 2014. During the 2014 CFL season, Johnson appeared in only five regular season games, mostly due to nagging injuries. He missed two playoff games to address a personal family matter in Florida. In total, he accumulated seven receptions for 151 yards, and scored one touchdown. Johnson was suspended by the Alouettes after he failed to report for mandatory training camp in the spring of 2015. He remained suspended through the
2015 CFL season. Following the season, Johnson was not offered a new contract by the Alouettes and became a free agent on February 9, 2016.
Fundidores de Monterrey In March 2017, the
Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesional de México announced that Johnson would play one game for the
Fundidores de Monterrey. On April 2, 2017, he caught three passes, including a 41-yard touchdown reception, to help Monterrey defeat the
Dinos de Saltillo, 14–6. ==Career statistics==