Seth's 50 Centers

A fun look at the NFL’s most common last name

My longtime friend Howard’s wife Amy jokes every year while we’re watching the Bengals in the man cave that she wants to form an NFL fantasy football team of all Johnsons.

It’s a funny thing to joke about, especially with the Bengals having some of the more prominent Johnsons in the league. While looking at Chad Johnson’s career numbers — he’s about to top 7,000 receiving yards for his career, by the way — on nfl.com I noticed just how many Johnsons there really are.

Here’s a look at all 40 Johnsons currently on NFL rosters, as listed on nfl.com, because as Bengals preseason play-by-play man Paul Keels says, “you can never have enough Johnsons”:

Al Johnson: A center from Wisconsin, Al spent his first four seasons with the Cowboys but currently plays for the Cardinals.

Andre Johnson: One of the top receivers in the game last year, Andre pulled in 103 passes for 1,147 yards for the Texans. He only scored five TDs, however and I’d given up on him in fantasy after his sad 63-catch season the year before. One highlight for Andre was watching the Buckeyes beat his Hurricanes in the 2002 national championship!

Antonio Johnson: Antonio is a rookie DT for the Titans out of Mississippi State.

Bethel Johnson: Bethel is with his third team in five years, this year playing WR for the Texans. He was a Patriot for three years before joining the Vikings last year. Bethel has a street named after him in Columbus, OH…uh, not really.

Brad Johnson: Old man river himself, Brad has been the incumbent quarterback of Amy’s Team Johnson over the years. This Florida State alum has thrown for 28,548 yards in his career, including a career high 4,004 for the Redskins in 1999. He now holds Carrie Underwood’s purse on the sidelines as he backs up Tony Romo for the Cowboys.

Brandon Johnson: This second-year linebacker for the Cardinals spent his collegiate career with another Cardinals team in Louisville.

Brian Johnson: Deciding they didn’t have enough Johnsons, the Cardinals picked up Brian in the draft from LSU. He’s an offensive guard and weighs 307 pounds.

Bryant Johnson: The third straight Johnson for the Cardinals, Bryant played his college ball at Penn State, where he watched Chris Gamble intercept a Zach Mills pass for the only touchdown in the 2002 OSU-PSU game.

Calvin Johnson: This guy is HUGE! At 6-5, 239, Calvin lit up college corners at Georgia Tech and the rookie picked up right where he left off by lighting up Bengals rookie DB Leon Hall in the first preseason game last week.

Chad Johnson: No, not that Chad Johnson! This Chad Johnson is a rookie corner for the Vikings. He went to Northwestern State and while it’s unconfirmed, I hear he changed his name to Chad Johnson in college because he was in awe of Ocho Cinco!

Chad Johnson: Ocho Cinco. Eighty-five. Seven-eleven. Chad has led the AFC in receiving yards four straight years. He’s caught 90 or more balls three times and will hit the 500 catch mark this year, in addition to the aforementioned 7,000 yard mark.

Charles Johnson: Unlike the former Steelers receiver, this Charles Johnson is a rookie DE. He played his college ball at UGA.

Charlie Johnson: Charlie plays for the Colts and used to play for the Cowboys, of Oklahoma State. He’s a large man, weighing 305 pounds.

Chase Johnson: Chase is a rookie tackle from Wyoming. He likes fire flies, red cars and long walks on the beach…uh, I don’t know if that’s true. What is true is he’s a Viking.

Chris Johnson: Chris plays for the Raiders, his third team in four years. He didn’t play in any games his first two seasons out of Louisville, but appeared in 13 for the Packers last year.

Darcy Johnson: You could make fun of Darcy for his name, but at 6-5, 252, I doubt you’d want to. He’s a TE from Central Florida and has appeared in one game with the Giants.

Derrick Johnson: The first of two Derrick Johnsons, this one is a third-year man for the Chiefs. He played at Texas before their national title.

Derrick Johnson: This Derrick Johnson saw the first one go pro a year before he did. He’s a DB for the Dolphins after playing for the 49ers and Falcons before that.

Dirk Johnson: Believe it or not, Dirk is a punter. Out of Northern Colorado he wasn’t the punter who got stabbed last year, but he is fighting for his life as the Eagles’ starting punter this year.

Doug Johnson: The Bengals signed this Johnson just to add to their plethora of Johnsons, but when Jon Kitna left for the Lions, and Anthony Wright only stuck around for one year, Doug found his way to the back up QB spot. His biggest value will be hoping Carson Palmer doesn’t miss a snap all season.

Edward Johnson: Ed went to Penn State and is now a rookie DE for the Colts. He was also born a week before Christmas in 1983.

Eric Johnson: Big Eric caught 82 balls as a tight end with the 49ers in 2004, but hasn’t done much since. He’ll now catch passes from Drew Brees in New Orleans.

Jarret Johnson: Jarret is in his fifth year with the Ravens and rushes quarterbacks from his DE spot. He played college football for Alabama, so there’s a chance he can’t read. Just kidding Jarret!

Jeramie Johnson: The first of two not spelled “Jeremy” Johnsons. This Johnson is a rookie from Mississippi State. Wow, with multiple MSU Johnsons, you’d think the Bulldogs would’ve been better.

Jeremi Johnson: This fullback lives to handle the rock, but he only touches it around 20 times a season. He’s usually blocking for another upcoming Johnson, Rudi.

Jovon Johnson: Jovon is a little guy, only 5-9, but he plays for the Steelers and is in his second year out of Iowa.

Kyle Johnson: A Bronco from Denver, Kyle started 14 games in 2005. He’s also an Orange from Syracuse.

Landon Johnson: Another Bengals Johnson, Landon totaled 112 tackles last year to lead the team. Landon played collegiately for Purdue.

Marcus Johnson: Marcus is in his third year out of Mississippi. He’s 6-6, 321 and plays defensive tackle, but he’s only had one tackle in his entire career.

Michael Johnson: Not the 400-meter dash champ, no Michael is a rookie safety from Arizona.

Rory Johnson: Rory is another rookie, this time from Mississippi. He was born in 1986, making me a very old man.

Rudi Johnson: The last of the Cincinnati Johnsons, Rudi stepped quietly out of Corey Dillon’s shadow to rush for over 4,000 yards the past three seasons. Rudi is known for his quiet leadership and willingness to gain the tough yards.

Spencer Johnson: Spence is a fourth-year guy out of Auburn. He plays DT for the Vikings and had 40 tackles as a rookie in 2004.

Teyo Johnson: Teyo played TE for Stanford before being a Raider, a Cardinal and now a Bronco. He played in 16 games as a rookie and has appeared in just 14 since.

Thomas Johnson: Thomas has only played professionally in Texas, both as a Cowboy and now as a Texan.

Todd Johnson: Todd played for Florida between the Gators 1996 and 2006 national championships. He’s a Bear now.

Tom Johnson: Tom’s a young guy from Southern Mississippi. He’s a 6-2, 286 DT and the Colts give him his paycheck.

Travis Johnson: Travis is in his third year out of Florida State. he’s a Texan and has 37 total tackles in his career.

Travonti Johnson: Travonti gets the “Strangest Named Johnson” award for that bizarre first name. He’s a rookie from Central Florida and he’ll be playing DB for the Giants.

Trevor Johnson: Trevor is a DE from Nebraska and he’s now with the Rams after stints with the Jets and Saints.

Wow, that’s a lot of Johnsons! And we didn’t even get to talk about Tank Johnson, who is probably purchasing an assault rifle as we speak and is out of the league this year!

You may be able to use this list to compile a fantasy team full of Johnsons, but joining a league that uses individual defensive players would be a plus!