Latest news with #NazeehJohnson
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Nazeeh Johnson happy to be focused on defense rather than recovery
In the early days of the Kansas City Chiefs' 2023 training camp at Missouri Western State University in St. Joseph, second-year cornerback Nazeeh Johnson — who had been limited to special teams during his rookie season — was turning heads and drawing rave reviews for his work on defense. Unfortunately, the former Marshall defender suffered a torn ACL during an indoor camp practice, ending his second campaign before it started. While he returned to play in 16 games (including six starts) in 2024, he seemed to be a shell of his former self as he adjusted to playing on a surgically repaired knee. Now, however, Johnson is back to 100%. 'I feel completely different,' he declared, shortly after finishing Wednesday's practice in the building where his 2022 season ended. 'I feel like how I did entering Year 2. I don't even think about my knee. Last year I was dealing with my knee swelling here and there; it just lingered on during the season. But now, it's healthy. I feel normal. I actually feel better than I did prior to my injury.' But Johnson's recovery from a major injury wasn't his only learning experience of the season. During his days with the Thundering Herd, Johnson had played safety. But in 2024, the Chiefs moved him outside to cornerback. He now understands that last year, he was still learning the nuances of the position. 'Personally,' Johnson explained, 'I feel like last year was just a baseline. Granted, it was my first year ever playing corner in the NFL — or even in the game. Then, coming off the ACL as well, there was a lot of stuff going on. [So] I like to look at it as a baseline. I can only get better from there.' Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo and his position coaches offered Johnson some encouragement after his first season back. 'They just challenged me,' Johnson recalled. 'They were like, 'We need that dog back. Stop worrying about messing up. Be bold, and be great.' So I just took that in the offseason and just challenged myself. Why not me?' With a strong group competing to fill Kansas City's secondary, Johnson knows that versatility will play a major role in his playing time — because in team meetings, Spagnuolo has focused on having cornerbacks who can line up at multiple positions. 'He's going to interchange us depending on personnel packages and stuff like that,' said Johnson, 'so all of us [need to know] the different roles — from nickel to left [and] right corner. Everything changes, but Spags is a mastermind at that; it's hard for teams to really get a gauge on who is going to be playing where.' As Johnson prepares for his fourth season, he and his fellow corners have had the unenviable responsibility of covering Kansas City's wide receivers, who seem to be making big plays in every video clip coming out of St. Joseph. He'll be happy to pass the responsibility of covering speedsters like Xavier Worthy, Hollywood Brown — and camp darling Tyquan Thornton — to opposing teams. 'They're fast,' he confirmed. 'Every time you see somebody going deep, we're always in somewhat [of] a trail position because they're just so fast to get off the line. [There's] one thing about our receivers: they catch those deep balls down the field. They're going to give a lot of people headaches, because they've just got speed all over the place. [There's] Worthy [and] Hollywood. And then you've got Thornton, who's going crazy right now. It's just speed, so I say, 'Everybody just warm up your hammies,' because it's crazy.'
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Fourth-year Chiefs defender has entered 2025 with a renewed confidence after facing obstacles early in his career
Fourth-year Chiefs defender has entered 2025 with a renewed confidence after facing obstacles early in his career originally appeared on A to Z Sports. One of the more unheralded picks from the Kansas City Chiefs' impressive 2022 NFL Draft class is cornerback Nazeeh played exclusively on special teams as a rookie, racking up eight tackles. Johnson entered 2023 with a lot of hype, as he ran with the first-team defense throughout offseason OTAs. Unfortunately, he tore his ACL early on during training camp, costing him the entire returned in 2024 in appeared in every game but one, making six starts. While speaking to the media following Day 13 of training camp practice on Wednesday, Johnson stated that he finally feels as good as he did prior to sustaining the ACL injury two years ago. "Oh, man, I feel completely different," Johnson said. "I feel like I did in Year 2. I don't even think about my knee. Last year I was dealing with my knee swelling here and there, and it just lingered on through the season. But now it's healthy. I feel normal. I actually feel better than I did prior to my injury." 2024 was essentially Johnson's rookie season, which had its ups and downs. He believes that the experience he gained laid the groundwork for being able to take the next step in his development in 2025. "I feel like last year was just a baseline," Johnson said. "It's my first year ever playing corner in the NFL, even in a game. Then coming off the ACL as well, there was a lot of stuff going on. But, I look at it as a baseline. I can only get better from there." Johnson also said that his coaches encouraged him to loosen up a bit and not overthink things. "They just challenged me," Johnson said of his coaches. "They're like — we need that dog back. Stop worrying about messing up. Be bold. Be great. So I just took that into the offseason and just challenged myself. Why not me? I can play a lot freer. Last year I was just nervous. Not trying to make a mistake being the new guy in the room at corner. But in reality, you just got to go out there and just play free." Johnson recorded 56 total tackles and three passes defensed last season. Now that he has some experience under his belt and is completely healthy, perhaps he will take his game to the next level in 2025. With Kristian Fulton still on the PUP list, there are extra reps for Johnson to have with the first-team defense, whether it's out on the boundary or inside the story was originally reported by A to Z Sports on Aug 6, 2025, where it first appeared.
USA Today
24-06-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Kansas City Chiefs 90-man roster by jersey number: No. 13, DB Nazeeh Johnson
The Kansas City Chiefs selected defensive back Nazeeh Johnson with the No. 259 pick in the seventh round of the 2022 NFL draft. He appeared in 11 games as a rookie before suffering a torn ACL during Chiefs Training Camp in 2023. Upon his return to the field last season, Johnson started in six games, tallying 56 combined tackles and one sack. A Martinsburg, West Virginia native, Johnson was a star with the Marshall Thundering Herd as a collegian before earning two Super Bowl rings in Kansas City over the first three years of his professional career. What jersey number does Nazeeh Johnson wear? Nazeeh Johnson currently wears the No. 13 jersey for the Kansas City Chiefs. How much money will Nazeeh Johnson make in 2025? According to Johnson will receive a base salary of $1,150,000 in addition to a prorated signing bonus of $400,000 and a per-game roster bonus of $200,000 next season. His total cap number will be $1,888,235 in 2025. Top Nazeeh Johnson highlight
