30 worst No. 1 overall picks in NFL Draft history: 18. WR, Keyshawn Johnson
Stats:
- 10,571 passing yards
- 64 touchdowns
Things didn’t come easy for wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson. Clearly filled with a ridiculous amount of talent, the Los Angeles native simply couldn’t get things right in the classroom. His low SAT scores forced him to take the Junior college route and attend West Los Angeles College. He performed well at his pit stop and transferred to USC.
Like always, Johnson dominated again, registering back-to-back seasons of over 1,300 receiving yards. Once he was selected by the New York Jets with the first pick in the 1996 draft, the domination stopped. By no means was Johnson an awful player but he simply didn’t live up to the hype.
In his first year in the league, Johnson failed to crack a thousand yards. In fact, it was the same story in year two as well. Granted, Johnson played with horrific quarterbacks but still, the former USC star didn’t produce at a high level.
After finally finding his rhythm in the league, Johnson was selected to back-to-back Pro Bowls. Instead of continuing to groom him, the Jets elected to sell him when his stock was at its highest to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for two first-round picks.
With several solid years under his belt, Johnson found himself on a championship roster as the Buccaneers took home the Lombardi in 2002. While he was officially a champion, Johnson’s contributions were pedestrian as he caught six passes for 69 yards.
All in all, Johnson was a solid player.
A bust? No. Great? No. Okay? That sounds about right.