Athletes - Rudi Johnson

Home > Listing Index > Athletes > Rudi Johnson

	Athletes - Rudi Johnson

Rudi Ali Johnson (born October 1, 1979 in Petersburg, Virginia) is an American football running back who currently plays for the National Football League's Cincinnati Bengals. He was drafted by the Bengals out of Auburn University with the fifth pick of the fourth round of the 2001 NFL Draft, the 100th overall player taken. His mother got his middle name from her idol, Muhammad Ali.

College career

Before starring at Auburn University, Johnson graduated from Butler County (Kansas) Community College, where he averaged 7.3 yards per carry in his final year there. At Auburn, he rushed 324 times for 1567 yards, which was second in school history. He only played there one year.

NFL

Rudi Johnson saw little playing time in his first two NFL seasons. He backed up three-time Pro Bowler Corey Dillon, the Bengals leading rusher since 1997, and had just 17 carries and 7 receptions.

But Dillon missed much of the 2003 season with injuries, and Johnson unexpectedly found himself in the starting lineup. He took full advantage of his opportunity, rushing for 957 yards and 9 touchdowns, while adding another 146 yards on 21 receptions in just 9 games. Rudi Johnson's contributions helped the Bengals improve from a 2-14 record in 2002 (the worst in franchise history,) to an 8-8 record in 2003, only their second non-losing record in 13 years.

An unhappy Dillon was traded to the New England Patriots after the 2003 season and Rudi Johnson was named the starter. He didn't disappoint, starting every game and setting a franchise rushing record with 1,454 yards. He also scored 12 touchdowns and was named to the AFC Pro Bowl squad. With Rudi Johnson in the backfield, the Bengals duplicated their 8-8 season.

Johnson is considered one of the NFL's premier running backs and one of the main reasons for the Bengals' incredible improvement. In 2005, Johnson shared tailback duties with former University of Michigan running back Chris Perry, the Bengals' first round pick in the 2004 NFL draft, giving the Bengals' running attack added dimension. By the end of the season, the Bengals finished with an 11-5 record, the team's first winning season since 1990. This was in no small part due to Johnson, who broke his own franchise record with 1,458 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns, while also recording a career high 23 receptions for 90 yards.

[ Visit the complete Wikipedia entry for Rudi Johnson ]

This page is based on the copyrighted Wikipedia article Rudi Johnson; it is used under the GNU Free Documentation License. You may redistribute it, verbatim or modified, providing that you comply with the terms of the GFDL.

Athletes - Rudi Johnson

College career

NFL

Searches on eBay

Related searches on eBay