ARTICLE: Keyshawn Johnson a happy camper
As he walks under the bridge that leads to the Carolina Panthers practice field, the Panthers free agent wide receiver is reminded instantly of what his signing has meant to fans of his latest team.
"Keyshawn!" yells a boy from 50 yards away.
"Hey, Keyshawn," says a bearded man holding various paraphernalia to be autographed.
Friday's mini camp practice was Johnson's first time on the field with his new teammates. For the first time, he lined up, ran a route and caught a pass from Jake Delhomme. Delhomme's demeanor impressed Johnson very much.
"He's cool," said Johnson. "He's fun. I like guys like that. I like guys that take their job seriously when they are playing football but at the same time try to have a little bit of fun and relax the environment. I think that he brings that to the table at the quarterback position."
Then there is the matter of Delhomme's favorite target, wide receiver Steve Smith, who happened to become the first receiver since 1991 to win the triple crown at his position most catches, most yards and most touchdowns. This was accomplished in a season in which the Panthers weren't able to develop another target in their passing game capable of pulling double and triple teams off of Smith. So enter Keyshawn Johnson, who says he can help Smith, Smith can help him, and the two of them playing together can help the team as a whole.
"I think it's going to be plus to this entire team, not just to me individually," said Johnson, who has 744 career receptions for 9,756 yards and 60 touchdowns in his career. "Obviously, it is well documented what (Steve) has been able to do over the last couple of years, and what I've done speaks for itself. I think when you look at what they (the Panthers) did last year and the opportunity that they had last year, adding a few more pieces to the puzzle is going to help the situation, we hope."
Beginnings are not new to Johnson. The Panthers represent the fourth stop in his storied career. He has attended mini camps with the New York Jets, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (where he won a Super Bowl), and Dallas Cowboys. He says the Panthers are not much different from their division rivals.
"All of them are different," he said. "They are all unique in their own way. Coming here reminds me a lot of when I first got to Tampa. It was a team that had a pretty solid defense and an offense that could move the ball from time-to-time on the ground, but this offense I think is a little better than the one that I had under (Tony) Dungy in the beginning. Then we went on a couple of years later to win the Super Bowl, and this team reminds me so much of that."
For now, though, he must learn the ropes, which of course is the primary purpose of mini camp, where players where helmets, shorts and light jerseys only.
"You're really just trying to get yourself familiar with everything and trying to pick up on some of the offensive terminology," Johnson said. "Some of it I've had in the past and some of it is like a foreign language to me. I've taking it one step at a time for now. I don't anticipate any sudden flashes any time soon. But it was pretty good just to be able to get back on the football field and have an opportunity to go up against some defenders and catch some footballs."
And afterward, as he walked back to the stadium, the shouts of "Keyshawn" once again came from all directions.
"Keyshawn!" yells a boy from 50 yards away.
"Hey, Keyshawn," says a bearded man holding various paraphernalia to be autographed.
Friday's mini camp practice was Johnson's first time on the field with his new teammates. For the first time, he lined up, ran a route and caught a pass from Jake Delhomme. Delhomme's demeanor impressed Johnson very much.
"He's cool," said Johnson. "He's fun. I like guys like that. I like guys that take their job seriously when they are playing football but at the same time try to have a little bit of fun and relax the environment. I think that he brings that to the table at the quarterback position."
Then there is the matter of Delhomme's favorite target, wide receiver Steve Smith, who happened to become the first receiver since 1991 to win the triple crown at his position most catches, most yards and most touchdowns. This was accomplished in a season in which the Panthers weren't able to develop another target in their passing game capable of pulling double and triple teams off of Smith. So enter Keyshawn Johnson, who says he can help Smith, Smith can help him, and the two of them playing together can help the team as a whole.
"I think it's going to be plus to this entire team, not just to me individually," said Johnson, who has 744 career receptions for 9,756 yards and 60 touchdowns in his career. "Obviously, it is well documented what (Steve) has been able to do over the last couple of years, and what I've done speaks for itself. I think when you look at what they (the Panthers) did last year and the opportunity that they had last year, adding a few more pieces to the puzzle is going to help the situation, we hope."
Beginnings are not new to Johnson. The Panthers represent the fourth stop in his storied career. He has attended mini camps with the New York Jets, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (where he won a Super Bowl), and Dallas Cowboys. He says the Panthers are not much different from their division rivals.
"All of them are different," he said. "They are all unique in their own way. Coming here reminds me a lot of when I first got to Tampa. It was a team that had a pretty solid defense and an offense that could move the ball from time-to-time on the ground, but this offense I think is a little better than the one that I had under (Tony) Dungy in the beginning. Then we went on a couple of years later to win the Super Bowl, and this team reminds me so much of that."
For now, though, he must learn the ropes, which of course is the primary purpose of mini camp, where players where helmets, shorts and light jerseys only.
"You're really just trying to get yourself familiar with everything and trying to pick up on some of the offensive terminology," Johnson said. "Some of it I've had in the past and some of it is like a foreign language to me. I've taking it one step at a time for now. I don't anticipate any sudden flashes any time soon. But it was pretty good just to be able to get back on the football field and have an opportunity to go up against some defenders and catch some footballs."
And afterward, as he walked back to the stadium, the shouts of "Keyshawn" once again came from all directions.
posted by The Gryphon at 9:22 PM
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