Cris Carter's been training Larry Fitzgerald, Sidney Rice and Jaymar Johnson over the past week. Guess which one was the recipient of glowing praise from the former Viking receiver:
"You could tell that he went to a school that didn't have a sophisticated passing attack," Carter said of Johnson, a sixth-round draft pick out of Jackson (Miss.) State last year. "But he has phenomenal quickness and speed. Phenomenal. And his hands are better than you would think, from a guy that fast."
"He could start for the Vikings," said Carter, now an ESPN analyst.
That's an eyebrow-raising statement, to say the least. No one doubts that Johnson has excellent speed, but this is a guy whose only NFL stats have come in the preseason. At first glance, it seems like simply making the team would be a worthy enough goal for Johnson -- a player who spent 2009 on the practice squad.
But it's worth remembering that this isn't the first piece of high praise Johnson has received this offseason. Back in early June, Chilly called him perhaps the hardest working guy on the team, and it's abundantly clear that Johnson has been absolutely working his tail off. Training camp's right around the corner, and if Johnson wasn't already on your list of guys to keep an eye on, I'd highly recommend paying attention to what he can do in Mankato.