Calvin Johnson played college football at Georgia Tech, where he twice received first-team All-American honors, and was selected by the Lions second overall in the 2007 NFL Draft.
78 Facts About Calvin Johnson
2.
Calvin Johnson is 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.
3.
Calvin Johnson appeared in six consecutive Pro Bowls from 2010 to 2015 and received three consecutive first-team All-Pro selections from 2011 to 2013.
4.
Calvin Johnson was inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2018 and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2021.
5.
Calvin Johnson's parents stressed education in his childhood, forbidding him from playing sports if he didn't receive A's and B's in school.
6.
Calvin Johnson was 6 feet tall in middle school, and 6 feet 4 inches as a sophomore in high school.
7.
Calvin Johnson attended Sandy Creek High School in Tyrone, Georgia, and was a letterman in football and a baseball standout.
8.
Calvin Johnson was rated among the nation's top 10 wide receivers and top 100 players by virtually every recruiting analyst.
9.
Calvin Johnson was tabbed the No 4 wide receiver and No 15 player in the nation by TheInsiders.
10.
Calvin Johnson was rated as the best player in Georgia, No 12 in the Southeast and No 37 in the nation by Rivals.
11.
Calvin 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.
12.
Calvin Johnson was the Yellow Jackets' leading receiver with 48 catches for 837 receiving yards and seven receiving touchdowns, which were Georgia Tech freshman records.
13.
Calvin Johnson earned first-team All-American honors for the 2005 season.
14.
Calvin Johnson earned All-ACC honors for the second straight year and was a semifinalist for the Fred Biletnikoff Award.
15.
Calvin Johnson led the team with 54 catches for 888 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns.
16.
Calvin Johnson was named a team captain going into his junior season.
17.
Calvin Johnson entered his 2006 season in the running for the Biletnikoff Award and Heisman Trophy.
18.
Calvin Johnson was honored as the ACC Player of the Year, was a first-team All-ACC selection for the third consecutive year, and was recognized as a unanimous first-team All-American.
19.
Calvin Johnson's 15 receiving touchdowns were a new Georgia Tech single-season record.
20.
Calvin Johnson had 178 receptions for 2,927 yards and 28 touchdowns during his time with the Yellow Jackets.
21.
Calvin Johnson chose the latter, as he wanted to help the less fortunate.
22.
In 2016, Calvin Johnson was named to the Georgia Tech Sports Hall of Fame.
23.
Calvin Johnson was selected for induction to the College Football Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.
24.
On January 8,2007, Calvin Johnson declared himself eligible for the NFL Draft, bypassing his senior season at Georgia Tech.
25.
Calvin Johnson was said by ESPN to be able to be productive as a rookie, much like receiver Randy Moss.
26.
Calvin Johnson is one of only two players 6-foot-5 or taller, regardless of position, to run a 40-yard dash in under 4.40 seconds at the combine since 2005.
27.
Calvin Johnson was selected by the Detroit Lions in the first round as the second pick overall in the 2007 NFL Draft.
28.
The Lions, being told by the league that Calvin Johnson would have to skip the minicamp to attend, rescheduled the camp to accommodate Calvin Johnson.
29.
Calvin Johnson sustained a lower back injury after making a catch over two Philadelphia Eagles defenders on September 23,2007.
30.
Calvin Johnson finished the 2007 season with 48 receptions for 756 yards and five total touchdowns.
31.
In 2008, Calvin Johnson said he could "still feel" the lower-back injury that bothered him throughout his rookie season.
32.
Calvin Johnson took five weeks off after the 2007 season and was taking part in the Lions' offseason program.
33.
Calvin Johnson revealed that he needed Vicodin to play through the final three months of the 2007 season.
34.
Calvin Johnson needed the medication to help him play with a bone bruise in his back.
35.
Calvin Johnson ended the game with six receptions for 129 yards and two touchdowns.
36.
However, against the Minnesota Vikings, Calvin Johnson had four receptions for 85 yards and his third touchdown of the season.
37.
Calvin Johnson became the first Lion to lead the NFL in receiving touchdowns since Terry Barr in 1963.
38.
However, Calvin Johnson missed the Pro Bowl, with most experts attributing the snub to the Lions' dismal winless season.
39.
Calvin Johnson finished the 2009 season with 67 receptions, 984 yards, and five touchdowns, while missing two games.
40.
However, referee Gene Steratore ruled the catch incomplete, saying that Calvin Johnson had not maintained possession of the ball through the entire process of the catch.
41.
Calvin Johnson amassed 77 receptions for 1,120 yards and 12 touchdowns during the 2010 season.
42.
Calvin Johnson was selected to the first Pro Bowl of his career.
43.
Calvin Johnson was ranked 27th by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2011.
44.
In 2011, Calvin Johnson had his second best statistical season of his NFL career, reaching a then career-high 1,681 receiving yards and 16 touchdowns.
45.
Calvin Johnson joined Cloyce Box as the only players in franchise history to record at least 200 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns in the same game.
46.
Calvin Johnson finished the season with 96 receptions for a league-leading 1,681 receiving yards and 16 receiving touchdowns.
47.
Calvin Johnson became the first Lion to lead the league in receiving yards since Pat Studstill in 1966.
48.
Calvin Johnson was ranked third by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2012.
49.
On March 14,2012, Calvin Johnson signed an eight-year extension worth with the Detroit Lions, with guaranteed, making Calvin Johnson the highest-paid receiver in the league.
50.
Calvin Johnson beat out 42 other players and eliminated quarterback Cam Newton to win the Madden NFL 13 cover athlete on April 25,2012, on SportsNation.
51.
Calvin Johnson was named a starter for the NFC in the Pro Bowl played in Honolulu, Hawaii.
52.
Calvin Johnson finished with five receptions for 72 yards against the Chicago Bears in Week 17, missing out on 2,000 receiving yards by 36.
53.
Calvin Johnson finished the season leading the league in receptions and receiving yards.
54.
Calvin Johnson became the only player in the Super Bowl era to average 120 yards per game in a season, when he averaged 122.8 yards per game in 2012.
55.
Calvin Johnson was ranked third by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2013.
56.
In Week 10 against the Chicago Bears, Calvin Johnson had six receptions for 83 yards and two touchdown receptions.
57.
Calvin Johnson was named to the 2014 Pro Bowl, but an injury forced him to withdraw.
58.
Calvin Johnson was ranked second by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2014.
59.
Calvin Johnson suffered an ankle injury that kept him out of action after Week 5.
60.
Calvin Johnson was named to his fifth consecutive Pro Bowl, the most by any Lion since Barry Sanders was named to ten consecutive Pro Bowls.
61.
Calvin Johnson finished the 2014 season with 71 receptions for 1,044 receiving yards and receiving eight touchdowns.
62.
Calvin Johnson was ranked sixth by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2015.
63.
Much like Week 1 in Chicago five years back, in Week 4 at Seattle, Calvin Johnson was involved in another controversial play.
64.
Calvin Johnson finished the season with 88 receptions for 1,214 yards, and nine touchdowns, reaching 1,000-yards receiving for the sixth consecutive year, and seventh time in nine years.
65.
Calvin Johnson was named to the Pro Bowl for the sixth consecutive year, but he declined to attend.
66.
On March 8,2016, Calvin Johnson announced his retirement from the NFL after nine seasons.
67.
Calvin Johnson's 11,619 receiving yards rank fourth in a player's first nine seasons, trailing only Julio Jones, Torry Holt and Jerry Rice.
68.
Since Calvin Johnson was drafted by the Lions with the second overall pick in the 2007 NFL Draft, no player had more receiving yards, receiving touchdowns, and 100-yard games than Calvin Johnson through the 2015 season.
69.
Calvin Johnson's 5,137 receiving yards from 2011 to 2013 are the most by any player over a three-year stretch in NFL history.
70.
On February 6,2021, Calvin Johnson was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.
71.
Calvin Johnson has stated this is because the Lions forced him to repay $1.6 million of his signing bonus for retiring early and not playing out his contract.
72.
Calvin Johnson has said on multiple occasions that things between him and his former team will never be made right until then and has gone on to say that ownership views the team's players as "pawns".
73.
Calvin Johnson finished in third place to James Hinchcliffe and Laurie Hernandez.
74.
Calvin Johnson has since proceeded with plans to launch several cannabis facilities across the state under the brand name Primitiv.
75.
Also in August 2019, Calvin Johnson announced a partnership with Harvard University to study the effects of cannabis on chronic traumatic encephalopathy and its benefits in managing pain.
76.
Calvin Johnson became engaged to long-time girlfriend Brittney McNorton in March 2015.
77.
Calvin Johnson has a tattoo of the crucifixion of Jesus on his left arm and a Christian cross on his right arm.
78.
Calvin Johnson was part of a weekly Bible study group with other Lions players.