CNN – In 2008, the NFL was a vastly different league than it is now.
Tom Brady was still in his first decade of his 23-season-long career, games were still available to watch on analog television and Aaron Rodgers – currently the league’s oldest active player – had only just been announced as the starting quarterback for the Green Bay Packers.
This was the NFL Josh Johnson was stepping into as a rookie. Since then, Johnson has been a member of 14 different teams – including the San Francisco 49ers four times, the Baltimore Ravens three times and three other teams twice – meaning he holds the record for the most teams a player has been on.
It is a journey that has sent the 39-year-old to every corner of the US – with stints in other professional football leagues included.
It is an odyssey which has had its ups and downs for Johnson, battling loneliness, doubt and finding his place in the game he loves.
Josh Johnson will earn a base salary of $1,255,000 with the Washington Commanders, a signing bonus of $40,000 and a workout bonus of $42,500. – spotrac.com
And it’s a trek which has taught Johnson lessons not only about football, but also about life, family and himself.
“It means resiliency to me now,” Johnson told CNN Sports when asked what his record means to him. “It means faith. It means determination. It means always being able to find a way.
“And that comes from my family. That’s my family trait. That’s a lot of faith, that’s a lot of belief. Because I’m in a lot of situations where it didn’t look like it was going to be in my favor, things worked out in my favor.”
Having played his college football at San Diego, Johnson was selected in the fifth round of the 2008 NFL Draft by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
After serving as the team’s backup on his rookie contract – in the five starts he made for the Bucs, he had an 0-5 record …
