Johnson won’t help the Chargers much with their pass rush, but he will help their defense as a two down run stuffing linebacker and compliment to situational pass rusher and team leader in sacks Antawn Barnes. The Chargers will hope that Shaun Phillips can have a bounce back season in 2012 and will probably still use a 2^nd to 4^th rounder on a pass rusher as depth and competition just in case.

As a run stuffer, Johnson is a great player. He has experience in both a 3-4 and a 4-3 and fits in the Chargers’ 3-4. Among 4-3 outside linebacker last year, Johnson ranked 2^nd against the run and 5^th overall according to ProFootballFocus. He’s 31 in August, but this is a reasonable contract (4 years, 19 million) with not a lot of guaranteed money (7 million).

Grade: A