The Las Vegas Raiders have had some very bad injury luck this season. Many key players and starters have had to miss games.
One of the early injuries the team had to deal with was to defensive back Lonnie Johnson Jr. He impressed the coaching staff in the offseason and appeared to be in line to possibly start.
Unfortunately, he suffered a fractured fibula in training camp and had to start the season on Injured Reserve. He’s been itching to get back on the field, and he’s getting closer. The Raiders announced on Monday that Johnson has returned to practice.
Johnson has had a tough road since being a second-round pick in 2019. He seems to really like being with the Raiders and could have a long-term future with the team if he plays well.
Head coach Pete Carroll has spoken very highly of Johnson, so it stands to reason they’d be interested in bringing him back next season.
“We really miss Lonnie. I think we recognize Lonnie in a way that he hasn’t been recognized in the earlier parts of his career,” Carroll said in August after Johnson got hurt. “With great respect to the variety of things that he adds to the team and all, we really are going to miss him. We had a number of things that we had specially that he could do well in contributing to the defense and so we have to work a little bit to figure out how other guys can take those kinds of concepts and make them work for us. Lonnie’s in good spirits. He knows that it’s a good chance that it’s a minimal amount of time to get back. These five weeks are hugely important to him, so he can get back within 4-5 weeks into the season or whatever it is and we’ll really enjoy when he gets a chance to come back.”
Johnson Talks Return to Practice
Johnson has posted pictures online of himself watching Raiders games in his full uniform while his foot was still in a cast. He’s been very eager to return to the football field and make his Raiders debut.
Johnson is hoping to prove not that he just deserves playing time this season, but that he deserves a long-term contract with the team.
“Just taking it one day at a time,” Johnson said Monday, per Raiders.com. “I had a goal in mind when I first got here to prove to them that I want to be here long-term. Just taking it one day at a time, just stack every day.”
Raiders Could Use the Help
The Raiders’ defense has been inconsistent, especially in the passing game. Kyu Blu Kelly has been really struggling, but the coaching staff seems apprehensive to give rookie Darien Porter a chance.
Johnson has experience playing at safety and cornerback, but it remains to be seen where they’d like to play him. He’d make sense as a replacement for Kelly as one of the starting cornerbacks. Isaiah Pola-Mao is also struggling, so he could potentially replace him as the starting safety.
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