Calvin Johnson

Calvin Johnson Jr. (born September 29, 1985) is an American former professional football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons with the Detroit Lions. Nicknamed "Megatron" after the Transformers character of the same name, he is regarded as one of the greatest wide receivers of all time. Johnson played college football for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, winning the Fred Biletnikoff Award and Paul Warfield Trophy in 2006. He was selected by the Lions second overall in the 2007 NFL draft.

Johnson was noted for having a rare combination of size (6 ft 5 in and 239 lbs), catching ability, speed (40-yard dash in 4.35 seconds), strength, leaping ability, and body control. In 2012, he set the NFL season record for receiving yards. Johnson is also tied with Michael Irvin for 100-yard games in a season, tied with Adam Thielen for consecutive 100-yard games, and holds the record for consecutive games with 10 or more receptions. He appeared in six consecutive Pro Bowls from 2010 to 2015 and received three consecutive first-team All-Pro selections from 2011 to 2013.

While still regarded as being in his prime, Johnson retired after the 2015 season, citing a loss of passion for the game due to health concerns and the Lions' lack of overall success during his career. He was inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2018 and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2021.

Johnson was born to Calvin Johnson Sr. and Arica Johnson on September 29, 1985, in Tyrone, Georgia. Johnson's mother holds a Doctor of Education. Johnson's parents stressed education in his childhood, forbidding him from playing sports if he didn't receive As and Bs in school.

Johnson was 6 feet tall in middle school, and 6 feet 4 inches as a sophomore in high school. He attended Sandy Creek High School in Tyrone, Georgia, and was a letterman in football and a baseball standout. In football, he was a three-year starter as a wide receiver for the Patriots football team. As a sophomore, he made 34 receptions for 646 yards and 10 touchdowns. As a junior, Johnson caught 40 passes for 736 yards and eight touchdowns. His #81 was retired on October 22, 2010.

Johnson was rated among the nation's top 10 wide receivers and top 100 players by virtually every recruiting analyst. He was tabbed the No. 4 wide receiver and No. 15 player in the nation by TheInsiders.com, and named to the Super Southern 100 by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Rivals 100 by Rivals.com, TheInsiders.com Hot 100, the SuperPrep All-America 275, and the Prep Star Top 100 Dream Team.

Johnson was also rated as the best player in Georgia, No. 12 in the Southeast and No. 37 in the nation by Rivals.com, the No. 7 wide receiver in the nation by SuperPrep, and first-team all-state selection (Class AAAA) by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Finally, he was tabbed to the AJC's preseason Super 11. By the time he was a junior, he was ranked as within the top 10 wide receivers and the top 100 players in the nation by almost every writer. As a senior, Johnson finished as runner-up for Georgia 4A Division Player of the Year to future NFL head coach Sean McVay, then a star quarterback for Marist.

Johnson attended the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he played for head coach Chan Gailey's Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team from 2004 to 2006. Despite Georgia Tech being interested in his playing both football and baseball, Johnson's mother refused to allow Johnson to play both sports after determining that the year-round athletic schedule would be too demanding.