The Titans are releasing D'Ernest Johnson, another quick turn in a career that has rarely settled for long. Adam Schefter reported the move on Friday, and it sends the running back back into the market just as teams are sorting out the edges of their roster.
Johnson, 30, has been on the move since entering the league in 2019. He went undrafted out of South Florida, later signed a rookie contract with the Browns and re-signed to a one-year deal in 2022 before landing with the Jaguars on a one-year, $1.2 million contract for 2023. He returned on another one-year deal in 2024, joined the Ravens for training camp before being released, then surfaced on the Cardinals’ practice squad, where he was activated for one game before moving to the Patriots’ practice squad.
That path is why the release matters beyond one transaction. Johnson has spent the past several seasons moving among NFL rosters and practice squads, trying to turn short opportunities into something steadier. In 2025, he appeared in eight games for the Cardinals and Patriots and rushed 14 times for 25 yards, a modest line that helps explain why teams have kept cycling through options at RB.
The Titans’ decision also leaves an opening at the back end of the depth chart, even if the team has not said what pushed the move. When a player has already gone from the Browns to the Jaguars to the Ravens, then to the Cardinals and Patriots before landing with the Titans, a release is less a surprise than another checkpoint in a career built on staying ready for the next call. The next stop for Johnson is now the unanswered part.
