One of the top safeties who won't be franchise tagged is Rams' John Johnson, per source. He will have a strong market.
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) March 9, 2021
It should come as very little surprise, but the Los Angeles Rams will not be using the franchise tag on John Johnson. Jeremy Fowler of ESPN reported that bit of news Tuesday before the deadline, pointing out that Johnson will have a “strong market” when he becomes available as a free agent on March 17.
In an offseason where Marcus Maye, Justin Simmons and Marcus Williams all got the franchise tag, Johnson is one of the few deserving safeties not to have it applied to him. He probably doesn’t mind, either, given the fact that he could fetch at least $14 million per year in free agency.
Johnson has been a starter for the Rams in each of the last four seasons, becoming one of the top safeties in the NFL. Los Angeles doesn’t have much cap space to work with this offseason due to the decreasing salary cap and the amount of dead money on the books from Jared Goff and Todd Gurley, making it tough to afford Johnson on the one-year tag.
But he’ll certainly cash in elsewhere if the Rams are unable to sign him to a long-term extension after recording 105 tackles, eight passes defensed and one interception last season.
