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The Redskins have signed free agent running back Larry Johnson, the team announced on Friday.

Johnson, 6-1 and 230 pounds, is a big, bruising back who has compiled 6,219 rushing yards and 55 touchdowns in eight seasons spent mostly with the Kansas City Chiefs.

Along the way, he earned two Pro Bowl berths and 2006 All-Pro accolades.

Johnson joins Clinton Portis, another two-time Pro Bowler, in the Redskins’ backfield.

Johnson, who grew up in Pomfret, Md., called the signing a "dream come true."

"Being from the Maryland area, [I] grew up watching the Redskins," Johnson said during a brief interview at Redskins Park on Friday. "That’s what was on the TV, the Redskins and Cowboys...There’s just so much history. I used to go to their camps--Gary Clark, Art Monk, all of those guys were there.

"It’s great to be in a city with all my family and friends and everybody I basically went to high school and college with that’s still down here. So it’s fun."

Added head coach Mike Shanahan: "We are excited to bring in a running back that has had so much success in this league. Larry is a physical runner who will be a great addition to our backfield."

Johnson, 30, played seven-and-a-half seasons with the Chiefs before he was released midseason last year. He joined the Cincinnati Bengals to close out the season.

In addition to his career rushing yards and touchdowns, Johnson has a 4.4 yards-per-carry average for his career.

As a receiver out of the backfield, he has also caught 154 passes for 1,373 yards and six touchdowns.

Johnson entered the NFL as a first-round draft pick (27th overall) by the Chiefs in 2003. He played college football at Penn State.

Johnson had his two best NFL seasons in 2005-06, when he became just the third running back in NFL history to produce 1,750+ rushing yards in consecutive years.

Johnson owns the top two single-season rushing totals in Chiefs franchise history with 1,789 rushing yards in 2006 and 1,750 in 2005. His 1,789 rushing yards were a career high and his 416 rushing attempts that year marked an NFL single-season record.

In addition, Johnson has three of the top five single-game rushing marks in Chiefs history, including a 211-yard rushing performance at Houston on Nov. 20, 2005.

In 2005, Johnson rushed for 1,750 on 336 carries (5.2 yards-per-carry average) despite starting just nine games for the Chiefs.

Johnson’s father, Larry Johnson, Sr., played one season for the Redskins in 1974. He would later become head coach at T.C. Williams High School in Alexandria, Va., and then move on to become an assistant coach at Penn State. He currently is defensive line coach for the Nittany Lions.

OH MY GOD !!!

Why?

Disappointed? Yes. Disgusted... Yes.

Surprised? No. Attempts at rescuing the "character impaired" are part of Shanahan's legacy... so far with little success...

Let's hope that he has some magic ability to rehabilitate a violent misogynistic bigot... and, if not, let's hope the contract has a nice, big, fat way out...

I guess character just became a little less important at Redskins Park. That's sad.

Come on man, give me a break. Dexter Manley used to smoke crack before games. Every locker room needs a few nuckleheads. Give this man a chance.

bwdjr wrote:Come on man, give me a break. Dexter Manley used to smoke crack before games. Every locker room needs a few nuckleheads. Give this man a chance.

He's found the LORD Jesus Christ..... he has changed(I hope, I think, I wish)

How is Portis going to take this news?

I have mixed feelings on this one. Larry Johnson has been a pre madonna in the past. I just dont know what to think?
I guess if Larry can clean up his act I dont see how this would hurt.

We still need to fix the Oline so that is what I am really concerned about. Draft well and fix the Oline. That should be a good off season.

cool.......that sets the standard as far as charachter is concerned!.......Plaxico will be out of jail soon right?

actually i dont see how we dont sign pashtos and we do sign a nt and fricken larry 5 seasons ago pro bowl johnson...

So the guy bashes gays and critisized Todd Haley BIG WHOOP.

I think he's an upgrade over Rock and Ladell as a RB and I like that his contract is incentive laden.

Portis is done anyway. Last I seen he was still wearing glasses from the concussion. This guy might be a problem for us but so is Portis. Maybe we finally have someone that can get that 4 and 1 for us.

Gibbs4Life wrote:So the guy bashes gays and critisized Todd Haley BIG WHOOP.

I hope you're being facetious. In addition to the slurs and criticizing his coaches, he's been suspended from games by both the team and by the NFL. He was also arrested four times since 2003 for assault charges against women. How many second chances does a guy get before he's just a washed up piece of trash?

Hooligan wrote:

Gibbs4Life wrote:So the guy bashes gays and critisized Todd Haley BIG WHOOP.

I hope you're being facetious. In addition to the slurs and criticizing his coaches, he's been suspended from games by both the team and by the NFL. He was also arrested four times since 2003 for assault charges against women. How many second chances does a guy get before he's just a washed up piece of trash?

Hooligan, you have been around long enough to know that IS G4L. I can't say that I really disagree with him in this instance. I know he isn't a role model or even that good of a person. As long as he shows he is willing to contribute to the team and improve himself on and off the field then why not? Shanny and Allen obviously took this into account and think its a calculated risk that could work. Only time will tell.

Why can New England bring in Moss and Corey Dillon (no doubt charatcter guys before the got to the Pats) and do well with them.

BIG difference. Larry Johnson is a disgrace of a human being and his issues go far beyond those of Moss and Dillon; it's not even close. Johnson is a racist, violent human being that has no business being on any NFL roster. This is an embarrassing move by the Skins.

The conflicts between Johnson and Vermeil grew, and in 2004 Vermeil said that Johnson needed to grow up and "take the diapers off."

Johnson has been arrested four times since 2003 on various assault charges against women. In 2003, he was arrested for felony aggravated assault and misdemeanor domestic battery for waving a gun at his then-girlfriend, during an argument at his home. The charges were dropped when Johnson agreed to participate in a domestic violence diversion program. In 2005, he was again arrested for assault when a woman accused Johnson of pushing her to the ground, but the case was dropped after the alleged victim failed to appear in court for three different hearings.

His third arrest for assault came on February 24, 2008, after allegedly pushing a woman's head at a nightclub that night. On October 10, 2008, Johnson was arrested for the fourth time and charged with one count of non-aggravated assault for allegedly spitting a drink in a woman's face at a Kansas City nightclub on October 11. The woman involved, Ashley Stewart, has since filed a civil suit against Johnson, accusing him of negligence, assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress and negligent infliction of emotional distress.

It was announced on October 16, 2008 that Johnson would be deactivated for the October 19 game against the Tennessee Titans in response to violating an undisclosed team rule. The team said his suspension for this game was unrelated to the newest criminal investigation.

In March 2009, Johnson pleaded guilty to two counts of disturbing the peace, regarding the two incidents in 2008, and was sentenced to two years probation.

On October 28, 2009, the Chiefs suspended Johnson until November 9 for "conduct detrimental to the club." They ultimately agreed to a deal with his agent, Peter Schaffer, in which he would only lose one game check ($300,000).

The Chiefs confirmed Monday that they had run out of patience with his off-the-field problems and released Johnson the day he was due to come back from his second suspension in a year. But he was often angry and sullen, was dogged by controversy and frequently at odds with coaches and fans. On Oct. 25, in what turned out to be his final episode with the Chiefs, he posted on his Twitter account several insults to fans, questioned Coach Todd Haley’s credentials and used a gay slur. He repeated the slur the next day to reporters and was suspended for two weeks.

Judge not lest ye be judged

All that crap doesn't matter, what matters is where my soldiers at!!!!!!!

We dragged ourselves up to the meadowlands last yr and got bullied, we also lost to the 0-17 or whatever lions! I need tough strong soldiers and sometimes they come with issues... so be it, I'm not running a seminary this is a football team played by violent men. So again, welcome soldier #27 follow our General Shanahan and Lieutenant Bobby Turner and you'll do well here.

Let's get Okung and run this ball!!!!!

CanesSkins26 wrote:

Why can New England bring in Moss and Corey Dillon (no doubt charatcter guys before the got to the Pats) and do well with them.

BIG difference. Larry Johnson is a disgrace of a human being and his issues go far beyond those of Moss and Dillon; it's not even close. Johnson is a racist, violent human being that has no business being on any NFL roster. This is an embarrassing move by the Skins.

Ummm...did I just read a post from a University of Miami fan berating the character of players on his other team, the Skins. Wow, I think my head just exploded.

Hooligan wrote:

Gibbs4Life wrote:So the guy bashes gays and critisized Todd Haley BIG WHOOP.

I hope you're being facetious. In addition to the slurs and criticizing his coaches, he's been suspended from games by both the team and by the NFL. He was also arrested four times since 2003 for assault charges against women. How many second chances does a guy get before he's just a washed up piece of trash?

I agree completely with you about the guy's character and I'm not a fan of signing this guy. But to answer your question, as long as he can still play football and hasn't killed anyone, he'll have a line of teams waiting to sign him. Scratch that, Leonard Little and Donte Stallworth proved me wrong. You can kill somebody and still play in the NFL as long as you're still productive.

Love It!

Portis & LJ. Two complemenrty backs, probowlers, vets. Shanny designed run game.

AhhhhhhhYeahhhhh! First we cook....then we chill. AhhhhYeahhhhh!

I don't like the signing. It's a huge risk and I don't like the fact that he assulted women.

Hmmmm....as a football decision, I can see some sense in bringing in veteran motivation for Portis to start working harder, and a back-up plan for when number 26 gets injured. I think we're going to try to run the ball an awful lot next season, and it makes sense to have some beef in the backfield.

As for whether I'm actually comfortable with the idea of such a questionable human being lining up for my team, well, I'm less convinced.

So Cal Skin Dude wrote:Let me as you this?

Why can New England bring in Moss and Corey Dillon (no doubt charatcter guys before the got to the Pats) and do well with them.

It's not so much about how they did in the past, but how they are treated and monitored by their current management.

Let's give Shan and Allen the benefit of the doubt at this point. We need to use our picks for the O-line and possibly at QB.

RB's are a dime a dozen. And with Shanny's blocking techniques most any RB will flurish.

Because the Pats already had three SuperBowl wins when they signed Moss and Dillon. The locker room leaders were set. Veteran leadership was solid. The Skins are rebuilding. There will be a bunch of new players on the team this year. We need character, unselfishness and leadership, not 30 yr old woman-beaters. Larry Johnson isn't asking for a 2nd chance. He's asking for his 5th or 6th chance. We should have let Al Davis be the idiot in this case. (what's next? Pacman )

Hey, on the bright side, LJ did run for more yards (500) than Clinton (400) last season! Woohoo!

yup thats it, I'm more concerned about a less-high-profile criminal than probably about 50NFL players than I am about finishing 4-12. My vote is to back Shanahan and not act like a know it all. How many times did we get shut down on 3rd and 1 or 4th and 1? With Portis?

Screw it, it's so important to have flawless character on the team that we should draft the entire Harvard Football squad. No on will laugh at the Redskins in the NFC East.

We all knew the criticism would start immediately. God himself couldn't get a 60% approval rating in this city.

If he can show some maturity and clean up his act. Then why not?
I didnt know his father played for the Redskins. If he has become a man as far as character is concerned then this is a good move. He sure has the talent. Lets just wait and see what happens.

Who knows? Larry might be what this team needs?

If he does his job and keeps his act clean, we're fine. He went to Cincy last year and kept quiet. Hopefully he'll continue to do so and be a good contributor.

Zorn isn't our HC anymore, Shanny isn't going to put up with BS. Neither is Bruce. Shanny came in and set Clinton straight, these guys are on a short leash. You guys need to stop worrying.

None of you are going to care about his past grievances if he's out there trucking defenders over.

Don't forget that Duane Thomas came over to the Skins from the Pukes with some baggage. If LJ plays like he has shown he is capable of, it could turn out to be a good sign. Think of how many times the Skins have come up short in recent years on short yardage situations. LJ could help. However, if it turns out that he is really a Shaun Alexander or a TJ Duckett in B & G, then we needed to look somewhere else.

BurgundyandGoldfaith wrote:yup thats it, I'm more concerned about a less-high-profile criminal than probably about 50NFL players than I am about finishing 4-12. My vote is to back Shanahan and not act like a know it all. How many times did we get shut down on 3rd and 1 or 4th and 1? With Portis?

Screw it, it's so important to have flawless character on the team that we should draft the entire Harvard Football squad. No on will laugh at the Redskins in the NFC East.

We all knew the criticism would start immediately. God himself couldn't get a 60% approval rating in this city.

So the only options you know are 1) draft all Harvard players 2) sign players like LJ ???

(who ever said Harvard players would all be of good character anyway?)

I think it is obvious that everything will be fine IF LJ keeps his nose clean and plays hard. Hell, my bills will be fine too if someone drops a few hundred thousand in cash on my door step. It's all good

I like to LIKE the players I intend to root for. Call me silly or nostalgic. When the Skins score a TD, I like to think they are good guys, playing together with heart. Right now, knowing what I do about LJ, it'll be hard to root for him. I don't expect the Skins players to flawless. Just not woman beaters who have screwed up 5-6 times in that many NFL years. We can all hope he turns his life around this time.