Darius Dashome Johnson (born February 22, 1991) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

who played for the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for

Southern Methodist University Southern Methodist University (SMU) is a Private university, private research university in Dallas, Texas, United States, with a satellite campus in Taos County, New Mexico. SMU was founded on April 17, 1911, by the Methodist Episcopal Church, ...

. He was signed by the Falcons as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

in 2013.

Early life

Johnson played

high school football High school football, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...

at Hightower High School in

Missouri City, Texas Missouri City is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, within the metropolitan area. The city is mostly in Fort Bend County, with a small portion in Harris County. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 74,259, an increas ...

. He caught 29 passes for 421 yards and seven touchdowns his junior year in 2007, earning first-team all-district honors. He was rated the No. 68 wide receiver in the country, and a three-star prospect, by Rivals.com. Johnson was rated a two-star prospect by Scout.com. He also participated in track and field in high school.

College career

Johnson played

for the

SMU Mustangs The SMU Mustangs are the sport, athletic teams that represent Southern Methodist University in University Park, Texas, United States. SMU was founded in 1911 and joined the Southwest Conference, competing against Baylor Bears, Baylor, Rice Owls, ...

from 2009 to 2012. He played in four games his freshman year in 2009, catching 10 passes for 107 yards and one touchdown, garnering

Conference USA Conference USA (CUSA) is a collegiate athletic conference of member institutions in the Southern and Western United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports. CUSA's offices are located in Dallas, Texas. Mem ...

All-Freshman recognition. He appeared in 13 games, starting 10, in 2010, recording 78 receptions for 845 yards and six touchdowns. Johnson was SMU's MVP in the 2010 Armed Forces Bowl, recording nine receptions for 152 yards and one touchdown. He totaled 79 receptions for 1,188 yards and eight touchdowns his junior season in 2011, earning first-team All-Conference USA honors. He was named the MVP of the 2012 BBVA Compass Bowl after he caught seven passes for 120 yards and one touchdown. Johnson caught 64 passes for 787 yards and five touchdowns as a senior in 2012, earning second-team All-Conference USA honors.

Professional career

Johnson was signed by the

as an

on April 29, 2013. He was waived on August 31, 2013 and signed to the Falcon's practice squad on September 2, 2013. He was promoted to the active roster on October 19, 2013. He played in 10 games, starting two, for the Falcons during the

2013 NFL season The 2013 NFL season was the 94th season in the history of the National Football League (NFL) and the 48th of the Super Bowl era. The season saw the 2013 Seattle Seahawks season, Seattle Seahawks capture the first championship in the franchise' ...

, catching 22 passes for 210 yards and one

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

. In May 2014, Johnson was arrested for DUI, and was subsequently released by the Falcons on July 25, 2014. Johnson signed with the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

in May 9, 2016. He was waived on May 24, 2016.

References

External links

Atlanta Falcons bio

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Darius 1991 births Living people Players of American football from Missouri City, Texas American football wide receivers SMU Mustangs football players Atlanta Falcons players Players of American football from Harris County, Texas Detroit Lions players