Now Johnson has taken a small step in joining some of those greats himself.!
Titans running back Chris Johnson has joined Earl Campbell and Eddie George as the only players to reach 1,000 rushing yards in their rookie seasons.
He has joined Campbell and George as the only rookies in franchise history to rush for 1,000 yards. With three games remaining, Johnson has a chance to run down first George, then Campbell for the best debut season on this team. Johnson said Byner set a high standard for him to target as a rookie.
"I watched that film, and all those guys are great guys. For Eddie George and Earl Campbell, to be among those guys, it feels good," Johnson said.
Campbell, the No. 1 pick overall, helped the then-Houston Oilers reach the AFC championship game by running 302 times for 1,450 yards with 13 touchdowns in 1978. George followed in 1996 with 335 carries for 1,368 yards and eight touchdowns in 1996 while Houston remained home for the franchise.
Johnson became the 24th pick overall in April by the now Titans, a team looking for a serious boost on offense. Johnson, with his 4.24-second speed in the 40-yard dash, has provided just that. He reached 1,000 yards on his ninth carry of his 13th game and now has 222 carries for 1,094 yards with eight touchdowns.
That ranks him second in the AFC in yards rushing to Thomas Jones of the Jets, but Johnson leads the AFC in yards from scrimmage with 1,351 yards combined.
Johnson humbly sees one similarity between himself at 5-foot-11, 200 pounds, and Campbell and George who pounded defenses.
"Even though I'm still a speed guy, I still like to bring power. Those guys, they broke a lot of tackles, and I feel like I break a lot of tackles too. Being a running back with fast vision, there's going to be a lot of times you're going to have to break tackles and make people miss," Johnson said.
Titans coach Jeff Fisher helped pick George with the 14th pick overall and coached the running back for all but one of his NFL seasons. He sees Johnson sharing the toughness that George played with in his career.
"And they both show up week after week after week. Their styles are really different. Eddie had a lot more carries than CJ did. I guess in retrospect Eddie handled it very well. What would've happened to Eddie if we'd been able to split carries like we have with CJ and LenDale (White)," Fisher said.
White has 170 carries as the Titans consciously try to protect both running backs, even to the point of alternating and resting as needed during practice.
Fullback Ahmard Hall, a Texas native who watched Campbell play and was among the few to show up when George played at the Astrodome, sees splitting carries as something that can help Johnson enjoy a long — and successful — career.
"Everybody loves him. He's a good, humble guy. I've never seen speed in someone, to be able to put that type of speed he has and implement it in football, it's amazing to see him doing it. He's an all-around back. I'm excited. I'm grateful to be able to play with him," Hall said.
That speed is what impresses the Texans (6-7) as they prepare to host Tennessee (12-1) on Sunday.
"He has unbelievable speed and to see him pull away from some of these guys who I know are fast is quite impressive," Houston defensive end Anthony Weaver said.
Johnson's success doesn't surprise Houston coach Gary Kubiak, not after what he saw at the combine. He credits Titans offensive coordinator Mike Heimerdinger with helping the rookie be successful.
"He gets him in position to make plays, he does what he does best and the kid's responding," Kubiak said.
Campbell was inducted into the Hall of Fame, and George finished his career rushing for more than 10,000 yards and remains the team's all-time career rusher. That's company Johnson wants to continue keeping.
"To start off like this, I feel like I've got a great chance on accomplishing those goals," Johnson said.
