Buffalo Bills position room preview: Safety

The rookie: Jaquan Johnson

Jaquan Johnson, out of Miami, was an impressive selection by the Bills in round five of this year’s draft. He wasn’t drafted for a need — considering there are four safeties in front of him in this list — he was a BPA (best player available) selection; it’s hard to deny that. Johnson is a really good safety, his tape is awe-inspiring, and I thought he’d be long gone by the fourth round. Excellent value.

In case you weren’t aware, Miami has something called the Turnover Chain — essentially a giant chain sporting their logo that is awarded to whoever gets a turnover. If a player is wearing it frequently on the sideline, he’s had a good game. It turns out, the leader of the Turnover Chain crew is Johnson. In his last three seasons of collegiate play, he forced 10 turnovers.

At 5-foot-10, 191-pounds Johnson isn’t the biggest safety, nor is he the fastest — he ran a 4.69 second 40-yard-dash. But, he was an uber-productive player at Miami. For his career, he tallied 252 total tackles, eight interceptions, and seven pass deflections. Pro Football Focus gave him a high 86.4 grade in 2018, citing his fourth highest in the class in tackling efficiency (17.60), and sixth highest yards per cover snaps (.021) as reasons why.

Johnson was a team captain at Miami and backed up the distinguished status. He was a catalyst for new-found confidence on the Hurricanes defense, even giving a halftime speech that sparked a comeback against Florida State. But he’s more than a leader. He’s an incredibly well-rounded safety with a high football IQ, coverage instincts, and sound tackling. The Bills should find a way to get him on the field.