a resource for media professionals

Keyshawn Johnson

NFL Analyst

Keyshawn Johnson
Keyshawn Johnson

Keyshawn Johnson, the former Super Bowl champion and All Pro wide receiver, joined ESPN in 2007 as an NFL studio analyst the same day he announced his retirement from the National Football League.  He appears on both Sunday NFL Countdown and Monday Night Countdown, and he co-hosts ESPN Radio’s weekly Football Tonight Special with Chris Mortensen on Fridays during the NFL season.   

Johnson is a key player in ESPN’s year-round NFL presentation, including NFL Draft and Super Bowl week coverage.  He also serves as a guest host on ESPN and ESPN Radio programs.  His on-air contributions extend beyond football through personality and issue-oriented features and as part of major event coverage on both ESPN and ABC.  Johnson made his debut as a guest analyst (while still a member of the Carolina Panthers) on ESPN’s main set during the 2007 NFL Draft.  He also participated in the SportsCenter Who’s Now series in 2007, as he, Kirk Herbstreit and Michael Wilbon helped determine the “Ultimate Sports Star.” 

The top overall pick by the New York Jets in the 1996 NFL Draft, Johnson played for four teams – Jets (1996-99), Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2000-03), Dallas Cowboys (2004-05) and Panthers (2006) – during his 11 NFL seasons.  One of the most productive receivers of his era, Johnson had 814 receptions for 10,571 yards and 64 touchdowns in 167 games.  The three-time Pro Bowler helped lead the Buccaneers to a win in Super Bowl XXXVII.  In his final season in 2006, he caught 70 passes for 815 yards and four touchdowns, becoming just the 16th player in league history with 800 career receptions.

A Los Angeles native, Johnson grew up near the USC campus and was a two-time All-American at Southern Cal under legendary head coach John Robinson.  (He also served as a Trojans ball boy for six years during his youth.)  Johnson ranks among USC’s all-time great receivers with 168 catches for 2,796 yards and 16 TDs.  He had a school-best 17 100-yard receiving games during his career, including 11 consecutive regular season games, still an NCAA record.  He led the Trojans to a Cotton Bowl victory his junior year and a Rose Bowl victory his senior year – earning back-to-back MVP honors. During his senior year in 1995 he caught a Pac-10 record 102 passes.  He was inducted into the Cotton Bowl Hall of Fame in 2007 and the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame in December 2008.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in history from USC in 1996. Prior to USC, Johnson was a Junior College All-American at West Los Angeles College.

In addition to his ESPN analyst duties, Johnson is CEO of First Picks Management, a development company that focuses on franchise businesses in the foodservice and hospitality industries, and is CEO of Keyshawn Capitol Development, a real estate company with projects in both residential and commercial space in the Los Angeles area. In 2009, Johnson also added interior design to his resume with “Keyshawn Johnson: Tackling Design,” an 11-episode reality home design series on A&E. He also appeared in an episode of the Food Network’s “Iron Chef America” as a celebrity guest judge in February 2009. He previously hosted a weekly radio show, “Taking it to the House,” on Sirius Satellite Radio, and wrote the book "Just Give Me the Damn Ball!: The Fast Times and Hard Knocks of an NFL Rookie” with ESPN’s Shelley Smith.  

In 2008, the Michael Awards named Keyshawn the “Best Dressed Man” of the year. He remains active in various charitable organizations, along with educational and political causes, through both time and monetary donations, and returns frequently to USC to make guest appearances in the classroom and on the football field.

-30-

 

 

031711wbh


Tagged as: ,

Comments are closed.