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A day after meeting with the Jets, running back Chris Johnson has signed with the team. It's a two-year deal, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.
The Titans parted ways with Johnson earlier this month amid a report that the team questioned his work ethic. The Jets had no such concerns, which explains Tuesday's meeting and the subsequent contract offer.
Johnson joins a backfield that includes Bilal Powell and Chris Ivory, as well as Jets offensive newcomers, quarterback Michael Vick and wide receivers Eric Decker and Jacoby Ford. And suddenly a terrible offense from last season becomes somewhat more dangerous, at least from the perspective of April.
CBSSports.com's Pete Prisco noted earlier this month that wherever Johnson ended up, he won't be the explosive player we saw early in his career, but a capable veteran who would be at his best in a backs-back-committee system.
"If a team signs Johnson expecting a lot of that explosion, it is making a mistake," Prisco wrote Monday. "What that team will get is a player like the one we saw in a second-half sequence against the Colts in Week 13. On four consecutive runs, Johnson took the ball from the Titans' 13 to the 41. He gained 28 yards on runs of 9, 3, 7 and 9 yards. It was nothing fancy, but his good feet helped make those runs possible.
"Something else to consider: Johnson still can help a team in the passing game. He had 52 catches, four for touchdowns, and his average of 8.2 yards per catch was second only to the 10.1 he had in that magical 2009 season."
