Like most of Carolina’s free agents, Charles Johnson’s future is up in the air.
But the fourth-year defensive end has assured himself a pretty decent paycheck at some point down the road following a breakout season.
Johnson, in his first season as a full-time starter, has been one of the few bright spots on a 1-12 football team with 64 tackles, 24 quarterback pressures and 8.5 sacks, which ranks tied for eighth in the NFC just four sacks behind Green Bay’s Clay Matthews.
They aren’t quite Pro Bowl numbers, but Johnson has eased the loss of Julius Peppers, who was voted to the NFC team five times and averaged more than 10 sacks per season during his eight-year run in Carolina.
“I’m just in the mindset where I’m trying to make plays,”
said Johnson, who took over the starting spot for Peppers. “I’m in a starting role, and I’ve never been in a starting role before. So I’m just trying to make the most of it and trying to make as many plays as I can.”
He’s done a nice job.
In fact, Johnson actually has more sacks than Peppers (8), although Peppers has had a bigger impact when it comes to creating turnovers. Johnson has just one forced fumble on the season.
“He's a starter now, so he's got a lot more opportunity to play,”
coach John Fox said of Johnson, the team’s third-round pick in the 2007 NFL draft out of Georgia. “He's played a lot more plays; he's taken full advantage of that. I think he's had an outstanding season, which sometimes gets lost when you don't win the number of games that you'd like to.”
Johnson’s success doesn’t come as a huge surprise to fellow starting defensive end Tyler Brayton, who has been shut out in the sack category this year.
Brayton said he noticed talent in Johnson after the former Bulldog registered 10 sacks over the previous two seasons in a backup role.
“He’s a naturally explosive, naturally strong person,”
Brayton said of Johnson, who has modest size for a defensive lineman at 6-foot-2 and 275 pounds. “He has great use of his hands and has great leverage. That is a great combination for success as a D-lineman. “
“He’s always had great physical skill, and now he’s really applying himself to the game. I think that came with experience. He’s doing a great job going out there and knowing how he can beat people at the line.”
Johnson’s future will largely depend on what happens with a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
Under the rules prior to 2009, he would have been an unrestricted free agent.
But under last year’s terms, Johnson would be a restricted free agent.
Predictably, Johnson said at this point he hasn’t heard from the Panthers about a new deal, but doesn’t expect to until a new CBA is in place.
“I think every game you have to play for your resume,”
Johnson said. “You never know what is going to happen next year and all. I have to play my tail off and see what happens next year.”
