Houston Texans cornerback Lonnie Johnson has been working his footwork all offseason, pandemic be damned.
The former 2019 second-round pick from Kentucky trained in the offseason specifically to improve his footwork. Johnson’s footwork was on display Saturday during the second day of padded training camp practice.
In a video shot by the Houston Chronicle’s Aaron Wilson, Johnson went against receiver Keke Coutee, who is a quick wideout, regardless of how frustrating the first two years of his career have been.
Johnson was able to keep pace with Coutee, partly because of his footwork. Another reason was Johnson has a 32 5/8-inch arm length that allows him to keep receivers in front of him and direct their routes.
Texans drills @JustinqReid @Lonnie30johnson who trained with @footwork_king1 pic.twitter.com/UsZxUWy3b9
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) August 15, 2020
Secondary coach D’Anton Lynn, who takes over in the new role, told reporters on Aug. 5 he is pleased with the progress Johnson has made in the offseason.
“As far as Lonnie goes, he had a good rookie year, great offseason, and just from a playbook-wise, maturity standpoint, you can already see the differences from year one to year two,” Lynn said. “So, we’re excited to see what he’s going to do when the pads come on.”
With pads on, Johnson was able to hold his own against a shifty receiver. If the Gary, Indiana, native can keep up the momentum, he should challenge for playing time and force the coaches to make tough decisions about who stays at cornerback on the 53-man roster.
