Will Johnson, CB, Michigan
Size:
Height: 6016
Weight: 194
Arm: 30 ⅛”
Hand: 9 ⅛”
Accomplishments:
First-Team All-American (2023) • First-Team All-Big Ten selection (2023) • Defensive MVP, 2023 National Championship Game • Defensive Freshman of the Year honors (2023)
“Will Johnson is a No. 1 lockdown-caliber cornerback prospect who can blanket opposing wide receivers because of his instincts, athleticism, and coverage ability. He epitomizes the terms 'impact player' and 'difference-maker.'”
Strengths:
Technical refinement
Great closing burst/speed
Lock-down cornerback
Scheme versatility
Ballhawk potential
Concerns:
Turning to locate the ball
Two-handed punches in press coverage
Consistency as open field one-on-one tackler
Film Analysis:
Will Johnson is a former five-star recruit who enters the NFL draft as one of the blue-chip prospects in the draft. He followed in the footsteps of his father, Deon Johnson, a defensive back at Michigan who helped them win three Big Ten Championships in the early 90s. Johnson offers the potential to be an outside lockdown cornerback with what appears to be elite length, speed, hip fluidity, and ball skills. He has great vision, instincts, and the combination of NFL size and athleticism to thrive versus NFL No.1 receivers. Johnson is a ball-hawking corner who had nine interceptions in his three-year career, showing instincts and ball skills.
Johnson effectively plays man-to-man coverage with patience, remaining square, and good footwork. He uses peer and mirror steps to shadow his receiver at the line of scrimmage. With his ability to mirror receivers and not overreact to their movements, Johnson displays strong football IQ with his pre-snap leveraging, essentially funneling the receiver to the strength of the coverage called. He thrives at “taking away something, to chase something.” Johnson uses strong punches to quickly jam his receiver outside and squeeze them to the sideline. He showcases the potential to be a suffocating man coverage defender with his stature, movement skills, and instincts.
In zone defensive coverages, Johnson is special. He has a smooth backpedal transitioning downhill with an explosive trigger and burst. His ability to play from his depth landmarks and bait QBs into throwing those dangerous out routes is great—it is a strength of his game. He has great closing speed/burst to get into phase and position himself to disrupt the pass and receiver. He has great zone eyes and remains disciplined with his readings. Johnson’s fluid hips help his transitions to be as smooth as possible without much wasted movement. He is great at undercutting routes attempting to force turnovers and pass breakups. He does a great job attacking and raking the receiver’s hands at the catch point.
An area of concern for Johnson’s draft profile is his inconsistency in playing press-man coverage. Johnson at times will be overaggressive at times and open his gate, allowing the receiver to release up the field vertically and get into their route. He does a good job remaining in phase and in position down the field but doesn’t consistently look for the football. If corrected, Johnson can make more plays on the football while in the hip pocket of his receiver.
Johnson uses a two-hand punch to shock his receiver at the line of scrimmage. This opens him up to quick counters that’ll place him into trail position early in the rep. Johnson is a willing tackler in space but needs to improve his technical approach. He reaches and lunges toward his target instead of consistently breaking down to wrap up. These concerns are coachable.
Overall, Johnson projects as a starting outside cornerback for teams that run multiple coverage concepts—Cover 3, 4, and 6 plus man-to-man. He has a high ceiling to develop into a true lockdown defender.
Prospect Projection: Day 1 – Rare, All-Pro
Exposures: Texas (2024), USC (2024), Washington (2024), Penn State (2023), Ohio State (2023), Alabama (2023), Washington (2023), Maryland (2023), Purdue (2023)
