It’s not hard to spot C.J. Gardner-Johnson at Detroit Lions minicamp. Just listen and you’ll hear the veteran defensive back chirping away. No. 2 is a big-time talker.
It’s not always safe for impressionable ears. Gardner-Johnson came to Detroit with the reputation of being a notorious trash talker, and he’s definitely lived up to expectations on that front.
It’s not an accident that the Lions targeted Gardner-Johnson as a free agent. The team wanted to become more difficult to play against, and Gardner-Johnson’s rep for being a brash, swaggery type of player was appealing. It augments his value as a hybrid slot corner/free safety, where he’s an above-average talent at each spot.
Head coach Dan Campbell sang Gardner-Johnson’s praises before Wednesday’s minicamp session.
“Look, he’s got contagious energy,” Campbell said. “As long as it’s not affecting your job and you stay focused on the job at hand — one of the reasons C.J. is that way is because that’s how he gets his engine going. In turn, that just spills out into the offense or your teammates. You can’t help — the level of intensity, it raises. I think that makes everybody around you better. And more competitive.”
Campbell added why that’s important to his team.
“If you’re not reaching that level of intensity in practice, you are probably going to get beat.”
We’ve already seen the intensity emanating from the secondary in the first handful of unpadded practice sessions. Between Gardner-Johnson and fellow newcomer Cam Sutton, the Detroit secondary has become a lot more verbose and confident. It’s something quarterback Jared Goff noted after Tuesday’s practice, and it’s something the new-look defense takes pride in.
Or, as Gardner-Johnson quipped to the media during Tuesday’s practice,
“I’m him.”
