New Orleans Saints rookie safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson excelled in his first career start, grading out as one of the team’s best performers against the Chicago Bears a week ago. He started in place of suspended cornerback P.J. Williams, spending the majority of his snaps covering the slot against Bears pass-catchers Tarik Cohen and Trey Burton. Pro Football Focus charting credited him with allowing just 18 yards in coverage, breaking up two of the 11 targets sent his way.
However, Gardner-Johnson drew negative attention from the league office — he took to his official Twitter account Friday morning, taking issue with a $21,000 fine from the NFL for an illegal hit on Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky. Gardner-Johnson later added two photos of himself hitting Trubisky, questioning which play constituted any illegal contact. He was never penalized during this game, so it’s safe to assume he plans to appeal this fine.
Because the rookie wage scale is determined by draft positioning, Gardner-Johnson is set to earn $495,000 this year — a weekly rate of about $29,117. That means he stands to have lost most of what he made by suiting up against Chicago, should a possible appeal against the NFL’s initial ruling be declined.
With Williams serving the second half of his two-week suspension and backup slot corner Patrick Robinson sidelined by a hamstring injury, expect the Saints to continue playing Gardner-Johnson often against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 8.
