Dontae Johnson and "Thanos" from "The Avengers" are similar.
They're both "inevitable."
Johnson has officially re-signed with the 49ers Thursday making his "inevitable" return.
It just never fails that no matter what he will find himself back and being re-signed with the team. Usually, his return would be a downer as he's never been much of a quality depth piece.
However, Johnson last season grew up. The guy not only played fairly decent from his usual outside corner spot in relief of injured players, but he was actually able to kick inside to the slot and hold his own. Being able to do that, even with star players in the secondary, is not easy. But Johnson proved for the second-half portion of the season that he can play above a sufficient level both inside and out.
Johnson appeared in 16 games (three starts) and finished with 22 tackles, two passes defensed, two fumble recoveries and the first forced fumble of his career. He also added nine tackles on special teams. Plus he saw action in three postseason contests (one start) and finished with six tackles.
That right there makes him a solid depth piece that made the idea of the 49ers bringing him back a no brainer. Johnson has versatile value and can be trusted in the case of an injury at cornerback. Given the injury history of Emmanuel Moseley and an unknown in the slot with K'Waun Williams gone, chances are he will see a sizeable amount of playing time.
Luckily, envisioning him being out there is not a total liability anymore. He isn't a starting caliber player, but having Johnson as a backup or rotational guy is not too shabby. Most of the defenses around the league do not have more than one or two solid corners. The fact the 49ers have three to four solid or serviceable ones is a sweet feature.
It's time to end the negative connotation behind Johnson's name.
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