Larry Johnson (running back)

Source:[5]

Johnson was drafted in the first round with the 27th overall pick in the 2003 NFL Draft as insurance for the Kansas City Chiefs, who were unsure if Priest Holmes would be healthy or even sign a contract extension. Johnson was drafted over the objection of head coach Dick Vermeil, who wanted to select a defensive player,[6] and despite the lack of recent NFL success by Penn State running backs (Blair Thomas, Ki-Jana Carter, and Curtis Enis). Vermeil criticized Johnson for his casual approach toward preparation.[6] The conflicts between Johnson and Vermeil grew, and in 2004 Vermeil said that Johnson needed to grow up and "take the diapers off."[7]

Johnson took great offense to this comment, and the public estrangement led to rumors that he would be traded. However, towards the end of the 2004 season, Johnson got an opportunity to start after injuries to Priest Holmes and Derrick Blaylock.

Facing the same situation in 2005, with Blaylock gone and Holmes having gone down with a season-ending neck injury in early November, Johnson on November 20 against the Houston Texans ran for a Chiefs' record 211 rushing yards and two touchdowns. He led the league in rushing yards and touchdowns after the injury to Holmes.

Johnson in a game in 2006

At the end of the 2005 regular season, Johnson had nine consecutive games with 100+ rushing yards, passing the 100-yard mark in every start for the Chiefs that season and earning a Pro Bowl berth.[4] During the final game of the 2005 regular season, Johnson set a new franchise record of 1,750 rushing yards in one season, despite not starting in 7 games during the season. In addition Johnson caught 33 passes for 343 yards, averaging over 10 yards per reception. Johnson was named the 2005 MVP for the Chiefs. The Chiefs' record in 2005 was 10–6, but it did not make the playoffs in spite of a winning record.

With injuries limiting Holmes during the previous two seasons, Johnson began the 2006 season as Kansas City's featured back. He rushed for 1,789 yards (second in the league) on 416 carries, an NFL record for most carries in a season. In an October 15 game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Johnson pulled strong safety Troy Polamalu down by his hair in order to tackle him. Although tackling a player by his hair is legal and does not alone constitute unnecessary roughness,[8] Johnson was penalized for rising to his feet while retaining grasp of Polamalu's hair (pulling him up in the process). The Chiefs made an appearance in the playoffs with a 9–7 record, where Johnson ran for 32 yards on 13 carries against the Indianapolis Colts. At the conclusion of the season, Johnson was selected for his second Pro Bowl appearance.

On June 21, 2007 Johnson stated that he was willing to sit out the Chiefs' training camp unless he and the Chiefs reached an agreement on a new contract. On July 22, rumors spread about Johnson being traded to the Green Bay Packers. The initial asking price was a first-, second-, and third-round draft pick.[9] Starting on July 27 with the beginning of training camp, he began a holdout during which he was fined $14,000 per day by the team, and did not report to training camp until nearly a month later when he and the team reached an agreement.[10][11] However, on August 21, Johnson and the Chiefs agreed to a five-year contract extension that locked Johnson up with the Chiefs through the 2012 season.[12] As a result of the extension, Johnson was the highest-paid running back in the NFL based on average salary per year. His new contract covered six years and was to pay him $45 million, with $19 million in guaranteed money—the biggest contract in Chiefs history.

In week 9 of the 2007 regular season, Johnson was sidelined late in the 4th quarter against the Green Bay Packers with a foot injury. The injury was season-ending; Johnson did not see any playing time in the rest of the 2007 season, and was placed on the injured reserve list.[13] Johnson ended the season with 559 yards on 158 attempts, and only three rushing touchdowns.[14]

Johnson lining up in the Wildcat formation in 2008

In Johnson's first regular season game since his injury, he rushed for 74 yards on 22 carries with an average of 3.4 yards per carry against the New England Patriots on September 7, 2008. The Chiefs lost the game 17–10.[15] After a loss to the Oakland Raiders the following week, Johnson spoke out about his low number of carries.[16] In his next two games, Johnson rushed for a combined 319 yards on 52 attempts with an average of 6.1 yards per carry.

Johnson was suspended for the Chiefs' game against the Tennessee Titans on October 18 for violating team rules.[17] Johnson also was benched for the following game against the New York Jets. Johnson, after weeks of being inactive for the Chiefs, was suspended by league commissioner Roger Goodell for the team's week 10 game against the San Diego Chargers, for violating the league's personal conduct policy, after he was charged with simple assault for allegedly spitting his drink in a woman's face (the fourth time in five years he had been accused of assaulting a woman), and as he awaited a court date for allegedly pushing another woman's face.[18][19] The suspension cost him $147,000; one game check.[18] He finished the season with 874 yards and five touchdowns.

Johnson's 2009 season got off to a very slow start, despite Johnson keeping his starting job. As of week 8, he had 132 attempts for only 358 yards. His 2.7 yards per carry were the worst of any NFL running back with at least 70 carries.

On October 27, 2009, the Chiefs "instructed Larry to refrain from practicing with the Chiefs or participating in other team activities" for his Twitter comments on Chiefs' head coach Todd Haley and reportedly using gay slurs when he addressed the media.[20] Because of his comments, Johnson encountered backlash from the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation.[21] Johnson's Twitter comments were: "My father got more credentials than most of these pro coaches." That was followed by: "My father played for the coach from "remember the titans". Our coach played golf. My father played for redskins briefley. Our coach. Nuthn."[22] Johnson's tweets were responded to by fans, one tweet including a reference to his nightclub incident. Johnson's response used the word "fag". The final post read: "Make me regret it. Lmao. U don't stop my checks. Lmao. So 'tweet' away."[22] Johnson subsequently said about the incidents, "First of all, I want to apologize to the fans of the Kansas City Chiefs and the rest of the NFL, Commissioner Goodell, the Chiefs organization, Coach Todd Haley, his staff, and my teammates for the words I used yesterday. I regret my actions. The words were used by me in frustration, and they were not appropriate."[20]

On October 28, 2009, the Chiefs suspended Johnson until November 9 for "conduct detrimental to the club".[23] They ultimately agreed to a deal with his agent, Peter Schaffer, in which he would only lose one game check ($300,000).[24] At the time of the suspension, Johnson was only 75 yards from passing Priest Holmes as the franchise's all-time leading rusher. This angered several fans, who started a petition demanding that the Chiefs either deactivate, release, or waive him. The petition said that Johnson "has never represented anything close to the values that we have for our Chiefs" and thus did not deserve the record.[25]

On November 9, the day Johnson was due to return from his suspension, the Chiefs waived him. Reportedly, the final straw for Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli was yet another tweet in which Johnson belittled a fan for making less money than he made. Johnson's agent, Schaffer, issued the following statement: "A part of him is excited and a part of him is very regretful. There's a lot of feelings going on right now. It's analogous to breaking up with a girlfriend. Maybe you saw it coming, but it still hurts when it happens."[24]

In November 2009, Johnson signed with the Cincinnati Bengals[26] for the prorated league minimum pay. Johnson served as backup to starting running back Cedric Benson. In the Bengals week 12 win over the Browns, Johnson rushed for 107 yards, his only 100-yard game of the season.

Johnson signed a three-year contract worth up to $12 million with the Washington Redskins as an unrestricted free agent on March 12, 2010. He played for former Denver Broncos coach Mike Shanahan.[27] On September 21, 2010, Johnson was released by the Redskins.[28]

On August 23, 2011, Johnson signed with the Miami Dolphins. On September 3, the Dolphins terminated Johnson's contract during final roster cuts. He rushed for 46 yards and one touchdown on 12 carries in the 2011 preseason. However, he was re-signed on September 8 after an injury to Daniel Thomas. He was released following the Dolphins' week 2 loss to the Houston Texans, when he only ran the ball once for a two-yard gain.

• Most rushing attempts in a single season: 416 (2006)

• Most career rushing attempts (1,375)[29]
• Most rushing yards in a single season: 1,789 (2006)[30]

Since 2020, Johnson has been criticized for posts on his Twitter account including Holocaust denial, support of Hitler, and antisemitic tropes such as claiming Jews worship Satan, and attributing fake quotes to the bible.[35] As such Twitter comments continued into August 2020, CNN reporter Jake Tapper called them explicitly "antisemitic garbage",[36][37] due to references to a "jewish cabal" and posting alleged quotes regarding "jews toy(ing) with the public as a cat toys with a mouse" or worshipping [satan]."[38] Johnson's tweets have also touched on topics common among conspiracy theory proponents, including freemasonry.[39]