BALTIMORE, MD – The New Orleans Saints and Cleveland Browns have submitted interview requests for Texans quarterbacks coach Jerrod Johnson for their respective offensive coordinator vacancies according to a league source.
The Saints fired offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael. The Browns fired offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt.
Johnson is a Houston native and former Texas A&M and NFL quarterback. Johnson, 35, is highly regarded for his work with Texans standout rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud, the frontrunner for NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. Stroud consistently praised Johnson and cited their strong relationship that goes back to Elite 11 work together in high school.
Johnson was previously previously the assistant quarterbacks coach for the Minnesota Vikings, working closely with coach Kevin O’Connell and veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins. He interviewed for the Los Angeles Chargers offensive coordinator job that went to former Dallas Cowboys offensive coordinator Kellen Moore.
Johnson is a former Indianapolis Colts offensive quality control coach who joined the Vikings in 2022.
A former Elite 11 quarterback coach, Johnson has also coached for the San Francisco 49ers under a Bill Walsh Minority Coaching Fellowship. He was promoted three years ago to his previous role with the Colts. He interviewed three years ago for the Philadelphia Eagles’ quarterbacks coaching position.
Johnson finished his college career with a school-record 8,011 passing yards and 8,888 yards of total offense and also played on the Aggies basketball team. A second-team All-Big 12 selection, Johnson was the program’s all-time leader in attempts, completions, passing yards and touchdowns before Kellen Mond broke those records.
When Johnson was playing at Texas A&M for former Aggies coach Mike Sherman, Cincinnati Bengals coach Zac Taylor was a graduate assistant.
Although Johnson went undrafted, he played for the Philadelphia Eagles, Pittsburgh Steelers, Seattle Seahawks, Chicago Bears, Baltimore Ravens, Dallas Cowboys, Hartford Colonials, and Sacramento Mountain Lions.
A Humble High School graduate, Johnson is a former assistant head coach and offensive coordinator at St. Thomas High School in Houston.
He played in the East-West Shrine Bowl in 2011 and coached at the East-West Shrine Bowl this year.
Johnson has enjoyed coaching Stroud.
“Absolutely, he’s a super mature kid,” Johnson told KPRC 2. “He has a great foundation. He played a lot of big-time football in college, and it doesn’t seem too big for him.
Aaron Wilson is a contributor to Sports Talk 790.