With free agency ongoing, Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has gotten a ton of praise for his actions in the past week, building a roster that has the talent to compete in the upcoming season. His predecessor, Rick Spielman, never got his team to the big game, but he built a few strong teams, too.
Former Vikings Defender Says Goodbye to the Sport
In his time as the organization’s general manager (2012-2021), the closest he got to the Super Bowl was the 2017 unit that marched into the NFC Championship Game, where the journey ended against the Eagles.
That group was driven by Mike Zimmer’s outstanding defense, with stars all over the place. One man who played a minor role on that team was rookie defensive tackle Jaleel Johnson.
Spielman’s 2017 fourth-round pick called it a career.
He announced on Instagram:
THE BUMPS, BRUISES, HEARTBREAKS,
WINS, LOSES & EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN IS
SOMETHING I’II NEVER TAKE FOR GRANTED. VERY
APPRECIATIVE AND GRATEFUL OF THE PATH I WAS
ABLE TO TRAVEL. THANK YOU TO MY FRIENDS,
FAMILY & TEAMMATES. I COULDN’T HAVE DONE IT
WITHOUT YOU. MOST IMPORTANTLY, THANK YOU
GOD. LUCKY NUMBER 7
I’M GONE.
Johnson’s Vikings career lasted four years, and he appeared in 53 games with 20 starts, tabulating 87 tackles, 5.5 sacks, and one forced fumble.
Zimmer said about his defender in 2019: “Sometimes he still is a little bit like a bull in a china shop. He just wants to go, go, go. We had to get him to understand where his gap is, and how he’s playing it, and where his hand should be, and things like that.”
His role expanded in 2020 when he became a full-time starter following Linval Joseph’s exit and Michael Pierce’s opt-out. Pierce recently announced his retirement, too.
Johnson then departed in 2021 and signed with the Houston Texans. His next two years were quite the back-and-fourth journey between three teams.
He failed to make Houston’s 53-man roster and the Saints signed him to the practice squad. A couple of weeks after being cut by Houston, the Texans re-signed him, this time to the active roster in need of defensive line help.
Well, he returned to the Saints in the following offseason, but an injury prevented him from making the team. He then spent a few weeks on Atlanta’s practice squad. The Texans once again signed him to the 53-man roster for about a month before he was waived. The Falcons claimed him and employed him for the remainder of the 2022 season. His last NFL action came in 2023 with the Titans.
The quick summary: Johnson spent four years with the Vikings and then had three stints with the Texans, two with the Saints and Falcons, and one with the Titans.
Overall, Johnson logged 86 NFL games with 25 starts. He registered 7.5 sacks and 149 tackles.
Now, at the age of 30, he announced his retirement from the NFL.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Pro Football Reference helped with this article.
Janik Eckardt is a football fan who likes numbers and stats. The Vikings became his favorite team despite their quarterback at the time, Christian Ponder. He is a walking soccer encyclopedia, loves watching sitcoms, and prefers Classic rock over other genres. Follow him on Twitter if you like the Vikings: @JanikEckardt