WATCH: Jermaine Johnson shares why he chose to have Florida State, Georgia logos on custom jacket for NFL Draft
Loyalty is a quality each NFL team looks for in their potential draftees, and nothing says loyalty like repping all the teams he played for and that helped him en route to his eventual first-round selection to the New York Jets in the 2022 NFL Draft.
“I know I didn’t get here alone. I had to help every single step of the way,” Johnson said. “So that was kind of my way of taking everyone that I couldn’t take to the draft with me that contributed to me being here. So I put my high school symbol in there, Eden Prairie [Minn.] Eagles. I put my junior college logo in there, the Pirates and Georgia Dawgs, Florida State Seminoles, and I couldn’t just rep one place because I’m not here just because of one place.”
After academic issues held him back from any DI offers, Johnson attended Independence Community College in Independence, Kansas, where Netflix was filming a season of “Last Chance U.” He was a featured star in the third season of the documentary when he became one of the top JUCO recruits in the country.
After two years in Independence, he would transfer to Georgia before moving to spend his COVID fifth year at Florida State after two seasons.
Johnson played a significant role on the defensive side of the ball for the Seminoles last season, recording 70 total tackles, 12 sacks and two forced fumbles. He transferred to Florida State after spending the 2019 and 2020 seasons at Georgia, where he tallied 34 tackles, 6.5 sacks and a forced fumble.
“[Each school] all played a huge factor, not just in my on-field development, but who I am as a man ,as a person, as a leader,” Johnson said. “So, no, I couldn’t just not pay my respects and show my gratitude to the places that got me here.”
In 27 games played at the Division I level, Johnson brings plenty of experience to the Jets, but that didn’t stop him from falling nearly out of the first round before New York snagged him at No. 26 overall. The Jets would trade up to select him, and the former Seminoles star is ready to change the trajectory of the franchise alongside his fellow draftees Garrett Wilson and Sauce Gardner.
“I’m here to give that Jets everything I have, and that’s definitely on the list,” Johnson told reporters. “That comes with me giving everything I’ve got and these others guys giving everything they’ve got. We’ll gladly embrace that.”