Predictions for LA Rams 8 top free agents this year

Free Agent II – Safety John Johnson III

Background – There is a buzz right now about the arrival of safety John Johnson III to the 2021 NFL Free Agency market, and for good reason.  JJ III is one of the best safeties in the NFL, and he’s signing with the highest bidder.

Strengths – John Johnson III is a young safety whose maturity and skillsets give him the onfield persona of a more seasoned veteran. He’s incredibly tough in-the-box, has very good coverage skills in press man, can play center field and read a quarterback’s eyes, and has enough leadership qualities to be the coverage signal call for the number one NFL defense. Yes, he’s pretty good.

Weaknesses – This is a tough one because whenever I see John Johnson III on the football field, I really can’t detect a weakness. In four seasons, he did miss ten games in the 2019 season. In 2019, he did struggle to make tackles as well. That’s it. He’s dominated the rest of the time. And I do mean dominated.

Estimated market value – John Johnson III could set a new standard for the position value this year. While some expect Johnson to get an average of $9 million / year, I could see Johnson agreeing to a record $15 million per season. He’ll draw plenty of interest.

Estimated team action – This has been the toughest player to predict exactly what the team will do with him. While his situation is the perfect scenario for the Rams’ to apply a Tag-and-Trade deal, I believe that they won’t. The Rams anticipated losing Johnson in 2021 by drafting two safeties in 2020 – Terell Burgess and Jordan Fuller. They will watch him sign on elsewhere.

Most likely team to sign him – New head coach Brandon Staley should push hard for Johnson to sign with the LA Chargers. After all, Johnson called the secondary coverages and truly was the defensive coach-on-the-field. But other teams will have a say in where Johnson goes. We know for a fact that the Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Las Vegas Raiders, San Francisco 49ers, Philadelphia Eagles, Denver Broncos, and Chicago Bears have been mentioned as possible destinations as well.