GREEN BAY, Wis. — If you -- for some reason -- purchased a Chris Johnson jersey when the Green Bay Packers drafted the Louisville cornerback in the seventh round in 2003, hopefully you still have it in your possession.
Sure, it's been 23 years, but some memorabilia withstands the test of time. It could come in handy later this month if the Packers happen to draft the San Diego State prospect with the same name at the same position. He'll have to wear No. 37 as well, which is currently occupied by Johnathan Baldwin, but there's almost certainly some jersey modification shops out there.
Regardless, Chris Johnson -- the present-day Chris Johnson -- would be a slam-dunk selection for the Packers at No. 52 overall. That's assuming he makes it that far, of course, which could be more of a pipedream than anything else considering the heat he's generating ahead of the draft.
There hasn't been a position on the Packers' roster under more scrutiny dating back to last summer than cornerback. Keisean Nixon and Carrington Valentine both struggled on the boundary in 2025, while Nate Hobbs -- released in March after signing a four-year deal with the Packers worth $48 million last spring -- struggled to stay healthy throughout the season. Even when he was on the field, he was deployed on the perimeter as opposed to the slot, where he had played well throughout his career to that point.
The room simply wasn't good enough in 2025, so the Packers are naturally going to have their eyes glued to a myriad of prospects. Johnson, perhaps the chief among them, won't be the only one in their crosshairs.
"The Packers have been widely connected to the second tier of corners in this year's class since the Senior Bowl," wrote ESPN's Matt Miller. "Chris Johnson has plenty of fans in the team's scouting department, from what I've heard."
National cornerback Chris Johnson from San Diego State during the Senior Bowl practices. (Photo: USA TODAY Sports)
The Packers have a limited allotment of draft picks following their blockbuster trade with the Dallas Cowboys in August for Micah Parsons. If they're going to take a swing on a cornerback with their second-round pick, they better make it count. However, it's also a class rich with depth at the position, so it wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility for them to pursue another position of need and circle back around to cornerback during the latter stages of day two or at some point on day three.
Honing in on Johnson in the second round would undoubtedly be considered as making it count.
Johnson, who has already had a pair of Zoom meetings with the Packers, stands at 6'0" and 193 pounds. At a time when college players are flocking to the transfer portal on a routine basis, Johnson stayed loyal to the Aztecs. He played all four collegiate years with the program, appearing in 47 games and accumulating 105 total tackles and six interceptions.
In what would ultimately be his final audition before turning pro, Johnson blossomed as a senior, registering three sacks and four of his six career interceptions. He was one of Pro Football Focus' top-graded cornerbacks in 2025, allowing just 18 receptions on 43 targets into his coverage -- or an opposing completion percentage just south of 42. Those numbers, along with his career-best nine pass breakups and four interceptions, contributed to what would've been a 16.1 passer rating allowed in the NFL. Of the cornerbacks in college football to play at least 150 snaps in coverage last season, Johnson's number would be the lowest.
Above all else, Johnson showcased the ability to thrive in both off-man and zone coverage. Not being scheme-dependent may be one of the more underrated traits for any cornerback and further fortifies his link to the Packers. New defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon is going to implement a quarters-based scheme in Green Bay that's reliant on having versatile defensive backs, and that's right up Johnson's alley. The talent of a great cornerback can usually transcend any scheme.
Chris Johnson warms up before a game against Hawaii on Oct. 8, 2024. (Photo: USA TODAY Sports)
"Yeah, I definitely would say I don't really have a preference. I feel like being able to switch it up is part of the game, you know?" Johnson told Sports Illustrated. "Being able to play man and zone coverage, mix coverages, that's the game within the game, you know what I mean? So I really don't have a preference, I just like to be able to play both.
"Our defense here at San Diego State, we played a lot of quarters. In quarters, obviously, there's a lot of man and zone principles, which I definitely like because we're just able to switch it up. Obviously, that didn't allow anybody to get a beat on what we were doing."
Johnson is regarded as the sixth-best cornerback -- sometimes fifth-best, depending on who you ask -- in this year's class and the No. 38 overall prospect on the consensus big board. Remarkably, he helped boost his draft stock even more with an otherworldly performance at the NFL Scouting Combine last month. He ran the 40-yard dash in 4.4 seconds with a 1.54 10-yard split, recorded a 38-inch vertical jump, and a broad jump of 10'6".
General manager Brian Gutekunst may need to get a little creative if he wants to skip the line for Johnson's services. The Packers are relatively limited this year with only seven draft picks, but they'll have a smorgasbord next spring for their departures in free agency this past month. They can't touch their compensatory picks yet, but they did receive an extra fourth-round pick from the Cowboys in a trade for Rashan Gary. Knowing that they have an assortment of ammunition coming their way, that could make Gutekunst more likely to part with the pick.
The Packers are going to receive another pair of fourth-round picks for the departures of Malik Willis and Romeo Doubs, a fifth for Quay Walker, and a sixth for either Rasheed Walker or Kingsley Enagbare. Willis' pick is likely to be bumped up to a third, and Walker's could be elevated to a fifth.
Zachary Jacobson is the Editor-in-Chief of Packer Report. He is entering his 12th season covering theGreen Bay Packers. He is a member of thePro Football Writers of America. Follow him on Twitter@zacobson or contact him via email atitszachariahj@gmail.com