ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Ty Johnson has sweated past roster cutdown days, but there was no doubt he’d land on the Buffalo Bills’ 53-man roster this time around.
Johnson, 27, was one of three running backs to make the Bills along with James Cook and Ray Davis.
Johnson, who the NFL’s reigning Most Valuable Player Josh Allen called the “best third-down back in football” on more than one occasion last year, is entering his seventh professional season.
The Fort Hill graduate signed a two-year, $5 million contract over the offseason that runs through the 2026 campaign.
If Johnson plays out the rest of his contract, he’d match Rod Breedlove’s area record for longest NFL career. Breedlove, an Allegany graduate, played 101 games at linebacker over eight seasons for Washington and Pittsburgh from 1960-67.
The 5-foot-10, 210-pound running back is coming off one of the most impactful seasons of his career. Johnson made a sliding 24-yard touchdown reception in the Bills’ playoff victory over the Broncos in the wild card round.
Johnson, a two-time Area Player of the Year at Fort Hill and star at the University of Maryland, finished the regular season with 41 carries for 213 yards and a touchdown and made 18 receptions for 284 yards and three touchdowns.
In six seasons with the Bills, New York Jets and Detroit Lions, Johnson had 279 attempts for 1,270 yards and five scores, and he has 111 receptions for 1,014 yards and seven TDs.
Including his return yardage, Johnson has 2,823 career all-purpose yards.
Buffalo opens the season at home against the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday, Sept. 7, at 8:20 p.m.