Calvin Johnson: the Best Wide Receiver

Calvin Johnson(born September 25, 1985 in Tyrone, Georgia) is a professional American football player who was drafted by the Detroit Lions. He spent three years for the Yellow Jackets at Georgia Tech until declaring for the 2007 NFL Draft. He played his first season for the Yellow Jackets in 2004 as a wide receiver. Johnson has a rare combination of size (6 ft. 5 in., 239 lb/ 196 cm, 108 kg), speed (4.35 sec 40-yard dash), strength, leaping ability (more than 45" (114 cm) vertical),[1][2] body control and hand-eye coordination. It is often mentioned that he is also a very humble and well-behaved person, exemplified by his building trip (see below), and his refraining from showing off or getting into confrontations on the field. On January 8, 2007, Johnson declared he would forego his senior year and enter the 2007 NFL Draft. Johnson was selected by the Detroit Lions as the 2nd pick overall in the 2007 NFL Draft.

Johnson was SI.com's Midseason NFL Draft Projection #1 pick, though Johnson had stated that he intended to earn his degree from Georgia Tech. On January 8, 2007, Calvin Johnson declared himself eligible for the NFL Draft, bypassing his senior season at Georgia Tech. He is regarded as the best athlete in the draft and is the #1 player on most draft boards. Johnson is said by ESPN to be able to be productive as a rookie, much like receiver Randy Moss was as a rookie.

In a mid-February workout with speed and conditioning coach Tom Shaw, Johnson clocked a remarkable 4.33 second 40-yard dash, recorded an 11-foot standing broad jump, and had a vertical leap of 43 inches.

Johnson surprised many when he weighed in at 239 pounds at the combine, 12 pounds more than expected, although he claims that this season he played "at about 235 and I got up to 238" and that his weight was not a problem. Johnson had told the media that he would not run the 40 yard dash at the combine but would wait until his March 15 workout at Georgia Tech. At the last minute, however, he was thought to have borrowed a pair of shoes from East Carolina QB James Pinkney and clocked an impressive 4.35 in the 40 yard dash. He later insisted that he had not borrowed the shoes, but simply reclaimed his own. Pinkney arrived in tennis shoes, and Johnson informed him he needed cleats and lent him his own. When he later returned to retrieve his shoes to run, many thought he was borrowing Pinkney's cleats. Johnson ultimately allowed the 4.35 to speak for itself and wowed scouts with his jump drill results, his receiving skills, and his 11 ft 7 in (3.53 m) broad jump, which is "best broad jump I can ever remember an NFL prospect having," according to Gil Brandt.

Johnson was selected by the Detroit Lions as the 2nd pick overall in the 2007 NFL Draft. This is the highest a Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket has ever been drafted. The Lions were expected to trade Johnson, most likely to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but the team announced that they were keeping him. The next day the Detroit Tigers invited him to throw out the first pitch.