Chris Johnsonfound a new home in New York on Wednesday, but that doesn't mean the running back is forgetting he was cut by the Tennessee Titans and disregarded by critics.
"I have a fresh start. Now I am going to go out there with a chip on my shoulder," Johnson told the Tennessean's Jim Wyatt in a phone interview Wednesday. "I know a lot of people are doubting me. I want to prove everybody wrong who has doubts in me."
The 28-year-old running back has plenty of doubters. Since his 2,000-yard season in 2009, the player known as CJ2K has become a stagnant runner who is indecisive and doesn't create yardage after contact. His low point came in a career-low 3.9 yards per carry last season.
However, Johnson is the most durable runner in the NFL and has never had a season in which he finished with fewer than 1,000 yards rushing.
Johnson views the Jets -- with backfield-mates Chris Ivory, Bilal Powell and, for now, Mike Goodson -- as a perfect fit for his style.
"I am very excited about (joining the Jets)," Johnson told Wyatt. "It's a team on the rise and I want to make them better. ... I still have it."
The Titans cut Johnson, and his $8 million 2014 salary, after failing to find a trade partner. The running back told Wyatt the Titans never asked him to take a pay cut or restructure his contract to stay.
"The Titans were ready to move on. They didn't want me any more,'' Johnson said. "But everything is going to work out."
The Jets hope Johnson will provide them a lightning-and-thunder backfield with Ivory that will allow them to get back to a ground-and-pound offense.
The latest edition of the "Around The League Podcast" covers the Aldon Smith arrest and analyzes the offseason movers and shakers in the NFC East and NFC South.
