C. J. Gardner-Johnson

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C. J. Gardner-Johnson
refer to caption
Gardner-Johnson in 2019
No. 22 – New Orleans Saints
Position:Safety
Personal information
Born: (1997-12-20) December 20, 1997 (age 23)
Cocoa, Florida
Height:5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight:210 lb (95 kg)
Career information
High school:Cocoa (FL)
College:Florida
NFL Draft:2019 / Round: 4 / Pick: 105
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
  • PFWA All-Rookie Team (2019)
Career NFL statistics as of Week 1, 2021
Total tackles:117
Sacks:1.0
Pass deflections:21
Interceptions:2
Forced fumbles:1
Fumble recoveries:1
Player stats at NFL.com

Chauncey "C. J." Gardner-Johnson (born December 20, 1997, as Chauncey Gardner Jr.[1]) is an American football safety for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Florida.

College career[]

As a true freshman at Florida, Gardner-Johnson appeared in all 13 games, making starts in the final 3 games of the season. During the 2017 Outback Bowl, Gardner-Johnson had 2 tackles and 2 interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown, he was named the MVP of the Outback bowl. During his sophomore season, Gardner-Johnson started in all 11 games. Before his junior season, Chauncey-Gardner was moved to the nickelback position.[2] On November 26, 2018, Gardner-Johnson announced that he would forgo his final year of eligibility and declare for the 2019 NFL Draft.[3]

Professional career[]

Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand size 40-yard dash 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
5 ft 10+7⁄8 in
(1.80 m) 		210 lb
(95 kg) 		30+7⁄8 in
(0.78 m) 		9+1⁄4 in
(0.23 m)		 4.48 s 4.20 s 7.03 s 36.0 in
(0.91 m)		 9 ft 9 in
(2.97 m)		 17 reps
All values from NFL Combine[4]

2019[]

Gardner-Johnson was drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the fourth round (105th overall) of the 2019 NFL Draft.[5] In a Week 13 game against the Atlanta Falcons on Thanksgiving Day, Gardner-Johnson recorded his first career interception off a pass thrown by Matt Ryan in the 26–18 win.[6] In Week 16 against the Tennessee Titans, Gardner-Johnson recorded 8 tackles and forced a fumble on wide receiver Kalif Raymond which he recovered during the 38–28 win.[7]

2020[]

On October 11, 2020, Gardner-Johnson was punched by teammate Michael Thomas during practice. This led to Thomas being benched for that week's game.[8] On November 1, 2020, in a 26–23 victory over the Chicago Bears, Gardner-Johnson was sucker-punched by Bears' wide receiver Javon Wims which led to a scuffle between both teams in the third quarter. Wims ran up to an unsuspecting Gardner-Johnson, who had his back turned and punched him in the helmet. When Gardner-Johnson did not react, Wims punched him again. Earlier broadcast showed Gardner-Johnson ripping off Wims' mouthguard away from Wims. Despite Wims claiming Gardner-Johnson spit on him, no evidence supported this claim.[9] Gardner-Johnson later denied that he spit on Wims.[10] The incident led to Wims being ejected from the game and suspended for two games by the NFL the next day.[11][12] Gardner-Johnson was also fined $5,128 for his actions with Wims.[13]

In Week 10 against the San Francisco 49ers, Gardner-Johnson recorded his first career sack on quarterback Nick Mullens during the 27–13 win.[14][15] In Week 12 against the Denver Broncos, Gardner-Johnson intercepted a pass thrown by wide receiver Kendall Hinton during the 31–3 win.[16] Gardner-Johnson was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the Saints on December 30, 2020,[17] and activated on January 8, 2021.[18]

On January 10, 2021, in the NFC Wildcard game against the Chicago Bears, Gardner-Johnson was involved in a scuffle with another Bears receiver, Anthony Miller. Miller was ejected for the fight while they both received unsportsmanlike conduct penalties.[citation needed]

Personal life[]

Gardner-Johnson was known as Chauncey Gardner Jr. in his first two seasons with Florida.[19] For his junior year, he changed the name on his jersey to Gardner-Johnson in honor of his stepfather, Brian Johnson. Gardner-Johnson's biological father, Chauncey Gardner Sr., has been a part of his life, but Johnson had raised Gardner-Johnson from the time he was a toddler.[20]

References[]

  1. ^ "C.J. Gardner-Johnson says he's changing his name". Saints Wire. August 9, 2020. Retrieved August 9, 2020.
  2. ^ Young, Ryan (April 11, 2018). "New position, same swagger for Florida's Chauncey Gardner-Johnson". SEC Country. Retrieved May 3, 2018.
  3. ^ Baker, Matt (November 26, 2018). "Florida Gators' Chauncey Gardner-Johnson declares for NFL draft". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved January 12, 2019.
  4. ^ "Chauncey Gardner-Johnson Combine Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
  5. ^ "Saints trade up in Round 4 to acquire Chauncey Gardner-Johnson". New Orleans Saints. April 27, 2019.
  6. ^ "Saints beat Falcons to clinch third straight NFC South title". www.espn.com. November 28, 2019. Retrieved November 28, 2019.
  7. ^ "Saints chasing NFC's top seed rally to beat Titans 38-28". www.espn.com. Associated Press. December 22, 2019. Retrieved December 22, 2019.
  8. ^ Barna, Daniel. "Saints Wide Receiver Michael Thomas Benched After Physical Altercation With Teammates". Complex. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
  9. ^ Goldberg, Rob. "Report: Javon Wims Told Bears That Gardner-Johnson Spit on Him Before Punches". Bleacher Report. Retrieved November 3, 2020.
  10. ^ Owens, Jason. "Bears' Javon Wims suspended 2 games for punch, C.J. Gardner-Johnson denies he spit on him". sports.yahoo.com. Retrieved November 3, 2020.
  11. ^ Patra, Kevin. "Bears WR Javon Wims suspended two games for punching Saints DB". NFL.com. Retrieved November 3, 2020.
  12. ^ Triplett, Mike (November 2, 2020). "NFL suspends Wims; Saints DB denies spitting". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 3, 2020.
  13. ^ Williams, Charean (November 7, 2020). "Chauncey Gardner-Johnson fined $5,128 for tiff with Javon Wims". ProFootballTalk. Retrieved November 8, 2020.
  14. ^ Sigler, John (November 19, 2020). "C.J. Gardner-Johnson had the fastest sack in the NFL in Week 10". Saints Wire. Retrieved November 20, 2020.
  15. ^ "San Francisco 49ers at New Orleans Saints - November 15th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  16. ^ "New Orleans Saints at Denver Broncos - November 29th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
  17. ^ Triplett, Mike (December 30, 2020). "Saints safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson placed on reserve/COVID-19 list". ESPN.com. Retrieved February 11, 2021.
  18. ^ Simmons, Myles (January 8, 2021). "Saints activate C.J. Gardner-Johnson off COVID-19 list". NBCSports.com. Retrieved February 11, 2021.
  19. ^ "Gardner MVP as Florida wins Outback Bowl". floridatoday.com. January 2, 2017. Retrieved January 5, 2020. Former Cocoa High star Chauncey Gardner Jr., returned one of his two fourth-quarter interceptions 58 yards for a touchdown
  20. ^ Abolverdi, Zach (March 13, 2018). "New name, same position for Florida DB Chauncey Gardner-Johnson". seccountry.com. Archived from the original on March 14, 2018. Retrieved May 3, 2018 – via Wayback Machine.

External links[]

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