The Cincinnati Bengals have called veteran quarterback Josh Johnson up from the practice squad for Sunday’s game in Houston, a modest roster move that says as much about the team’s caution as it does about one of the NFL’s most itinerant careers, via the NFL transaction wire.
Coach Zac Taylor had already flagged the possibility of elevating Johnson as a contingency after Joe Burrow spent the early part of the week limited with back tightness.
Burrow practiced in full on Friday and is expected to start, with Joe Flacco remaining the designated backup. Johnson’s presence on the 53-man roster simply gives Cincinnati a third option if the afternoon takes an ugly turn.
Johnson is 40, a fifth-round pick of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2008 who has spent nearly two decades proving that durability and availability can be a career.
He has been on more NFL rosters than almost any quarterback in league history, bouncing through San Francisco, Cleveland, the Jets, Indianapolis, Buffalo, Baltimore, the Giants, Houston, Las Vegas, Detroit, Denver, Washington and now a third tour in Cincinnati.
He has also suited up in the UFL, the Alliance of American Football and the XFL.
The Bengals first signed Johnson in 2013, brought him back in 2015, and this March gave him a one-year deal worth $1.5 million before cutting him at final roster cuts and quickly parking him on the practice squad.
Last season in Washington, he was more than a clipboard holder. Injuries to Jayden Daniels and Marcus Mariota pushed him into five games and two starts.
He completed 63 percent of his passes for 372 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions and finished 1-1 as a starter, including a Week 18 win over a resting Philadelphia Eagles team.
In Cincinnati’s preseason, he threw for 396 yards with two scores and no interceptions, enough to keep him in the building even after Flacco re-signed as Burrow’s primary insurance.
Sunday’s opponent is a small piece of that long résumé. Johnson spent 2017 with the Texans without appearing in a game. If he dresses and the script goes sideways, he would be two injuries from facing a former club.
More likely, he will stand on the sideline while Burrow and Flacco handle the snaps. The elevation is the NFL’s version of carrying an extra spare: cheap, experienced, and already familiar with the building.
For a franchise that has spent years managing Burrow’s health, that is the entire point of keeping a 40-year-old journeyman close.
The Bengals also elevated linebacker Joe Giles-Harris, but the quarterback move is the one that traces a career built on being ready when someone else cannot finish the day.
