Former FSU All-American shows excellent moves after serious injury less than year ago

FSU football has had game-changers over the years, but one of the most important ones in the Mike Norvell era was Jermaine Johnson.

Johnson was the first big-time win for Mike Norvell in the transfer portal era. Johnson transferred from Georgia and became the ACC Defensive Player of the Year and First-Team All-American.

He was a first-round draft pick of the NY Jets with the No. 21 overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. Johnson had already made his presence felt in the NFL, earning a spot in the 2023 Pro Bowl, but suffered a serious Achilles tear in early September 2024, forcing him to miss the remaining 14 games.

Johnson was in great spirits right after the injury happened, and the expected recovery time was 4-6 months. He posted this in January, just three months after the injury:

He posted this workout video on Saturday, seven months later, and nearly 10 months since the injury:

Johnson has always been a positive guy and a hard worker, so it's no surprise to see him make this type of progress after the injury.

Johnson has always been a positive guy and a hard worker, so it's no surprise to see him make this type of progress after the injury.

He played in nearly every snap on defense for the Noles in the 2021 season and had 70 tackles, 17.5 tackles for a loss, and 11.5 sacks in only 12 games.

The expectation is he'll be ready to return to the field for the start of the 2025 season as long as there are no setbacks.

The NY Jets only had one player with more than 4.5 sacks in 2024. Johnson had 7.5 and 11 tackles for a loss in 2023. Johnson has to prove he can play again against real players and not tackling dummies, but this is a great sign for his return this season after an injury that has derailed the careers of many players in the past.