After weeks of rumor and speculation, Chris Johnson has finally found a new home with the New York Jets. The one-time CJ2K hasn't been the same type of fantasy commodity since 2010 when he rushed for 11 touchdowns, but he did have something of a bounce-back season in 2013.
In the simplest terms, joining up with Gang Green will do Johnson's fantasy future some good. Only four teams ran the football more than the Jets last season and head coach Rex Ryan seems intent on returning to the ground-and-pound philosophy that was present during his first couple of seasons leading the team.
Of course Johnson isn't alone in the backfield. He'll share opportunities with Chris Ivory. It's a partnership that is sure to come with tradeoffs. Johnson could see quite a few carries between the 20s, but he'll have to take advantage of his breakaway speed to score a lot of touchdowns. When it comes to short yardage and goal-line situations, Ivory will more than likely be the man to handle those duties.
Still, Johnson's demise has been greatly exaggerated. The speedster has rushed for 1,000 yards in each of his first six seasons in the NFL and has scored 10 or more touchdowns in four of those seasons. Considering just 13 running backs topped 1,000 yards last season and only 10 scored double-digit touchdowns, Johnson is still part of a rather exclusive group.
It might be hard for him to repeat those numbers again in 2014, but based on what he's accomplished and what is expected of him in the near future, it's not unreasonable to think Chris Johnson could line up as a low-end No. 2 running back for plenty of fantasy owners.
Marcas Grant is a fantasy editor for NFL.com. You can follow him on Twitter.
