BleedGopher
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per Yahoo:
The Gophers’ best receiver in many years opted to return to Minneapolis, giving his ascending program a major boost and himself a chance to break some long-held school records. But don’t look at this as a victory lap for Johnson. He’s not expected to be treated any differently than he has while turning himself from a gifted athlete into one of college football’s most productive and dangerous receivers.
“I said to myself, if I come back I have to do it [for] the right reasons,” Johnson told Yahoo Sports last week at Big Ten Media Days. “I have to be prepared to do whatever it takes to get better. Not just rest on my laurels.”
Johnson polled everyone about whether to come out for the 2019 NFL draft: coaches and teammates, his Little League and high school coaches and, naturally, his family. There was only one choice in his mind, tough as it was.
“It came down to a lot of things I needed to get better at,” Johnson said. “There’s nothing I am top level at. It’s pretty much everything I need to work on route running, catching, speed ...”
That last skill is probably the biggest knock on Johnson. The 6-foot-2, 205-pound receiver has transformed from a high school quarterback into a receiver who is 100 catches shy of Eric Decker’s school mark for receptions; 1,1,32 yards behind Decker’s receiving record; and 11 receiving touchdowns behind Ron Johnson’s 31 career TDs.
If those feel like unapproachable marks to hit during Johnson’s senior campaign — on a team that hasn’t settled on a starting quarterback yet — consider that he hauled in 78 passes for 1,169 yards (about a 15-yard average) and 12 scores in a breakout 2018 season.
“And he probably will be the first to tell you he had five or six drops that he should have had,” Gophers offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca told Yahoo Sports.
Beyond those drops, the most concerning element of Johnson’s game from the perspective of NFL scouts might be his speed.
“I don’t know if we ever thought he was going to run some crazy 40-yard dash,” Ciarrocca said.
Johnson’s game is polished in other ways. His tape reveals a player who has thrived from the outside and in the slot. He dices up man coverage with slick, precise routes (especially slants) and gains separation quickly and with ease. Johnson also displays great body control and the ability to high-point to haul in 50-50 balls. And after the catch, Johnson can do damage — even while lacking that elite gear.
He said Minnesota Vikings WR Stefon Diggs is a player he watches as much as anyone in the NFL.
“That’s the guy that I like watching run routes,” Johnson said last week. “He’s very explosive running routes. He can get off the line quick and he can attack the ball.”
https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl-draft-...ng-the-elite-college-receivers-173457338.html
Go Gophers!!
The Gophers’ best receiver in many years opted to return to Minneapolis, giving his ascending program a major boost and himself a chance to break some long-held school records. But don’t look at this as a victory lap for Johnson. He’s not expected to be treated any differently than he has while turning himself from a gifted athlete into one of college football’s most productive and dangerous receivers.
“I said to myself, if I come back I have to do it [for] the right reasons,” Johnson told Yahoo Sports last week at Big Ten Media Days. “I have to be prepared to do whatever it takes to get better. Not just rest on my laurels.”
Johnson polled everyone about whether to come out for the 2019 NFL draft: coaches and teammates, his Little League and high school coaches and, naturally, his family. There was only one choice in his mind, tough as it was.
“It came down to a lot of things I needed to get better at,” Johnson said. “There’s nothing I am top level at. It’s pretty much everything I need to work on route running, catching, speed ...”
That last skill is probably the biggest knock on Johnson. The 6-foot-2, 205-pound receiver has transformed from a high school quarterback into a receiver who is 100 catches shy of Eric Decker’s school mark for receptions; 1,1,32 yards behind Decker’s receiving record; and 11 receiving touchdowns behind Ron Johnson’s 31 career TDs.
If those feel like unapproachable marks to hit during Johnson’s senior campaign — on a team that hasn’t settled on a starting quarterback yet — consider that he hauled in 78 passes for 1,169 yards (about a 15-yard average) and 12 scores in a breakout 2018 season.
“And he probably will be the first to tell you he had five or six drops that he should have had,” Gophers offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca told Yahoo Sports.
Beyond those drops, the most concerning element of Johnson’s game from the perspective of NFL scouts might be his speed.
“I don’t know if we ever thought he was going to run some crazy 40-yard dash,” Ciarrocca said.
Johnson’s game is polished in other ways. His tape reveals a player who has thrived from the outside and in the slot. He dices up man coverage with slick, precise routes (especially slants) and gains separation quickly and with ease. Johnson also displays great body control and the ability to high-point to haul in 50-50 balls. And after the catch, Johnson can do damage — even while lacking that elite gear.
He said Minnesota Vikings WR Stefon Diggs is a player he watches as much as anyone in the NFL.
“That’s the guy that I like watching run routes,” Johnson said last week. “He’s very explosive running routes. He can get off the line quick and he can attack the ball.”
https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl-draft-...ng-the-elite-college-receivers-173457338.html
Go Gophers!!