Bryant Johnson: Backup Profits from Weak Free-Agent Receiving Class

The Buffalo Bills have been looking to gain size at the wide receiver position for some time now.

There’s this 6-foot-3 209-pound WR out there by the name of Bryant Johnson. Johnson is a talented WR that has played on the Arizona Cardinals for five years now and is a former first round pick.

Sure, this guy’s got the size and the speed, seeing as he ran a 4.39 coming into the draft, but does he have what it takes to be even a No. 2 receiver in a league in which every position must have considerably talented depth. I think not.

While Johnson might be a nice fill-in, for what a lot of Bills fans, including myself, are seeing as a potential playoff contender, he’s not a savior.

I know what people think about how Johnson never really got to showcase his talent because he was behind stars Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin. This is just a mere facade over the fact that Johnson just isn’t a No. 1 or 2, at least in the Cardinals’ eyes.

Johnson was drafted the same year as Boldin and a round earlier (Johnson was a first-round pick.) So the fact of the matter is that Johnson was simply not as good as Boldin. He was definitely given the chances, but just wasn’t as good.

While I think Johnson has got the physical presence and athleticism to be a star in the NFL, he hasn’t shown it in five seasons, so why would he be any better now?

The free-agent market this year for WRs was kind of slim, minus the addiction of above-par guys such as Stallworth and Berrian.

This is another reason to not just go crazy for the guy. The market is slim but you don’t have to jump on the "get him now" hype wagon.

Bryant Johnson was overpaid simply for the reason of the weak receiving market this year.