WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. – Wide receiver Tyler Johnson saw 55 targets during the Buccaneers' 2021 season, converting them into 36 catches for 360 yards. He had doubled his receptions and nearly tripled his receiving yards from his 2020 rookie season.
Then, ahead of the 2022 season, he was waived. The Texans signed him, but after a brief stint, he was released in late October that year. The Buccaneers brought him back six days later, signing him to their practice squad. He spent the spring of 2023 with the Las Vegas Raiders before signing with the Rams later that summer.
While he spent the majority of last season on Los Angeles' practice squad, he showed enough in that first year with L.A. and this spring and summer to earn himself a spot on the team's initial 53-man roster.
After Puka Nacua exited last week's season opener with a knee injury, Johnson was trusted as the third wide receiver in the rotation, and he responded with a career-high 79 receiving yards on five receptions, highlighted by a 63-yard catch-and-run on a critical Rams drive against the Lions.
"It's a blessing, man," Johnson said after Wednesday's practice. "Like I said in that interview (with Voice of the Rams J.B. Long), I wasn't understanding what God was doing to me and for me, but over time, I look back and I'm just thankful to be where I am and how things are going right now. You know, it was rough at that time, but I just never, never stopped having faith. I knew God would end up restoring me and and lifting me up out of that dark place that I was in. But my mindset really didn't change. I came into work every single day, didn't complain. Just was here, just was in the moment, doing my role."
That answer to a question about being in that role after that journey over the last two years offers a glimpse of the work ethic that makes him fit right in with the rest of L.A.'s receivers.
Beyond that, he's someone who's been around for awhile now with reliability and communication a quarterback can appreciate.
"I got a lot of trust in him," Matthew Stafford said. "(He is) another guy that I can have really good dialogue with. I'm asking him questions, what it looked like on the backside there, what happened here, there or the other and he has really good information. He's a physical player like Puka (and) like Cooper. (He is) not afraid to stick his nose in there and block. He's definitely a guy that we value and has done a nice job for us."
McVay said that explosive 63-yard reception, and multiple other plays made by him in Week 1, reflected Johnson making the most of the opportunities he got when Nacua was sidelined with the knee injury in the preseason.
"I thought the shallow cross that he converts to a 60-plus yard gain was big, but he made a hand made a handful of other plays (too)," McVay said. "Did some good things without the ball. But it's always about making sure that you're ready for those opportunities if some unforeseen circumstances arise. I thought TJ did a great job of being able to maximize the time that Puka was out, to be able to get better and to get a lot more reps than he would have gotten otherwise. And I thought it showed."
That time spent on the Rams' practice squad offered what would prove to be important introspection, and in turn, the chance to put Johnson in the position he's in now.
"My role was practice squad last year," Johnson said. "I had to make sure the defense got the best look that they could have, and I learned about a lot about myself throughout that time as well, being able to expand what I want to do as a receiver as well. So I'm definitely thankful for the journey that I had, I wouldn't pick any other route, and like I said, I'm thankful to be here right now, too."
