Patriots: Jakob Johnson states his case to be starting fullback

Fullback Jakob Johnson has been a pleasant surprise and has expanded his role with the Patriots.

New England Patriots fullback Jakob Johnson seemed to have had a precarious position coming into summer camp, and some observers, including this one, thought that the team might be considering other options. Pro Football Focus ranked only 12 fullbacks, which have become sort of a rare breed in today’s NFL, and Johnson was No. 12. It was not particularly close.

There were some rumblings around the league that a few other fullbacks might be available due to salary cap issues. A hot rumor out of Baltimore was that GM Eric DeCosta had drafted the best fullback in the draft in Ben Mason, and the thought was that All-Pro Patrick Ricard might become a salary cap casualty and thus be available to New England.

Mason was a fifth round pick. That may not sound like much, but for a fullback, that’s practically a “generational talent.” However, coach Jim Harbaugh has instead chosen to convert Mason to a blocking tight end and to continue to use Ricard as his fullback. So, that appears to squelch the rumors about Ricard. However, even if some name-brand fullback appears on the free agent market next week after roster cutdown day, the Patriots may be happy with Johnson’s growth this season.

Another cliché is never to say never, but Johnson no longer seems to be on the roster bubble, and in fact seems to have expanded his role with the team.

In the preseason, Johnson has appeared as a fullback most of the time, but he has also been used as a behind-the-line-of-scrimmage H-Back and as a blocking tight end (and split out wide!). He logged reps on the kickoff return team, punt return team, kickoff coverage, punt coverage, and field goal/extra point team. That’s nine different roles and counting.

In Sunday’s action against the Giants, Johnson put in a hard day’s work at the office, though it didn’t show up in the box score.

The Patriots rang up 125 rushing yards on 21 carries, good for 6.0 yards per carry, and Johnson’s blocking accounted for a lot of that success. Special kudos for opening a hole in the third quarter for Rhamondre Stevenson. The big rookie running back scored his fifth rushing touchdown of the preseason. We may be seeing a statistical pattern emerging here.

Johnson has gained notoriety as the most successful player from the NFL’s International Pathway Program, which was created to provide international players the opportunity to be placed on the practice squad of an NFL team. Johnson was the first to be promoted to a 53-player active roster.

In this way, Johnson has been a pathfinder for other international players, including a medical student from Austria by the name of Sandro Platzgummer, who took time from his medical studies to break out for a 48-yard run against the New York Jets this preseason, with Saquon Barkley and the rest of the Giants’ first-string unit going wild on the sidelines.

https://twitter.com/patsdeutsch/status/1431177764627832834?s=20

After joint practices between the Patriots and Giants, Platzgummer and Johnson were opponents in Sunday’s game. But they also represented entire European nations. It’s hard to imagine the long-term influence of Johnson’s career.

After having penned articles earlier this preseason speculating that the Patriots might be looking for another fullback, this author is reminded of a scene in the movie Excalibur, in which one of the nobles finally realizes who Arthur is: “I am your humble knight, and I swear allegiance to the courage in your veins. So strong it is, its source must be Pendragon’s. I doubt you no more!”

Jakob Johnson, we do not doubt you will be the starting fullback come Week 1.

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