The News Of …

Calvin Johnson said he was watching “SportsCenter” with a friend when news of the New Orleans Saints’ bounty program broke earlier this month.
“I didn’t think anything of it when I heard it” – Johnson said today at his news conference to announce a new, eight-year contract. “I was watching ‘SportsCenter’ with one of my boys – he plays ball, too – and we were like: ‘That’s part of the game. It’s nothing new.’”
Johnson said he has felt targeted in games before but said: “I don’t know,” when asked whether he thought the Saints targeted him in their two games this season.
“I remember there was some talk around there, but I don’t really pay too much attention to it. I just go play” – he said.
Days before their January playoff meeting, former Saints defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, who’s accused of administering and contributing to the team’s bounty pool in 2009-11, talked of defending the 6-foot-5 Johnson and his team’s aggressive style of play.
“Guys that are 6-5 end up being 5-5 when they get flipped over on their head” – Williams told nola.com. “They didn’t say the rule says the ground couldn’t hurt their head. So we’ve got to find ways to make the ground be a part of it. You know, we won’t make helmet-to-helmet contact.”
Johnson was asked whether he ever has received money for delivering a big block in his five seasons with the Lions.
“We used to do that, but now it’s just expected out of us” – he said. “Our coach Shawn (Jefferson), all that’s expected from us. He keeps it tough on us, but they expect greatness out of us.”

Calvin Johnson.

For five years, Calvin Johnson has thrilled Detroit Lions fans, helping the city’s troubled NFL franchise recover from almost unimaginable depths to become one of the league’s most exciting young teams.
Now the Lions are rewarding the star receiver, giving “Megatron” a contract worthy of his catchy nickname.
Johnson has signed an eight-year deal worth up to $132 million, making him the highest paid receiver in the NFL. He had a year remaining on his original deal after being drafted in 2007, but this extension starts immediately and runs through the 2019 season.
“I’m so comfortable here now” – the 26-year-old Johnson said during a news conference Wednesday. “At first, not at all, but being here for five years, being around these people here in Detroit, teammates and just the city – I’m just growing accustomed to it.”
Johnson’s agent, Bus Cook, said the contract is worth $60 million guaranteed.
“Calvin’s one of those guys – we’ve said this about a few guys that we have in our building – whatever they pay him is not enough” – Lions coach Jim Schwartz said. “He’s truly a special player.”
After years of questionable drafts, the Lions finally began building a talented nucleus when they selected Johnson with the No. 2 overall pick in 2007. Detroit went 0-16 in his second season but added quarterback Matthew Stafford with the top pick in 2009. The Lions then took defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh with the second pick the following year.
Detroit made the playoffs last season for the first time in a dozen years. The challenge now is keeping these stars long term, and the Lions took care of Johnson with minimal angst.
“They were happy to get this thing done with, and I was happy as well” – Johnson said. “It wasn’t a lot of confrontation. We weren’t butting heads or anything. It was just something that we knew needed to get done.”
The 6-foot-5 Johnson is a two-time Pro Bowler and his 45 touchdowns receiving are the most in the NFL since 2008. His deal tops the one given to receiver Larry Fitzgerald of Arizona last year – an eight-year deal that could pay him as much as $120 million.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amhcOu7VVtE

In 2011, Johnson caught 96 passes for a league-leading 1.681 yards and 16 touchdowns, earning his second Pro Bowl nomination and enjoying his inaugural First-Team All-Pro selection. In the Lions’ first playoff game since 1999, a 45-28 loss to the New Orleans Saints, Johnson set an NFL record for a receiver in his first playoff game with 211 receiving yards. He also scored two touchdowns in that game. This despite the fact that Johnson was obviously the Saints’ primary focus. Earlier in the season in a 31-17 loss to the Saints, Johnson wasn’t just the Saints’ primary focus – he went through that game with a bull’s-eye on his back. That opened up opportunities for other receivers, proving that even when Johnson doesn’t get targeted, he’s extremely valuable to the Lions’ offense.
“Here’s the deal” – Lions receivers coach Shawn Jefferson recently said. “Calvin is just entering into the prime of his career. The things you saw Calvin do this year, the next five years, you’re going to see even better things coming. You are going to see even more explosion out of this guy and it’s going to be scary. I think this guy is rewriting the books.”
Schwartz agreed at his season-ending press conference. “One thing we talk about all the time is Calvin affecting coverage. [Running back] Jahvid Best affects a lot of coverage also because he is a tough matchup for a lot of linebackers so teams that want to play man, 2-man, and give space inside, Jahvid is a guy that gives them a lot of problems. We see it with the Saints. The Saints with [running back Darren] Sproles gives you a lot of the same problems and as much as Calvin frees up coverage, we have other guys that do the same thing, including Jahvid. The more weapons, the better.”
And now, the Lions have their most important weapon locked up for a good, long time.