Trumaine Johnson Isn’t Worried About Living Up to Great Expectations
Through the spring and into summer, the Chargers courted Trumaine Johnson, a pass catcher expected to restore the dazzle that John Jefferson and Wes Chandler once imparted to Air Coryell.
Their patience paid off a few weeks ago when Johnson purchased his freedom from the United States Football League and signed a multi-year contract with the Chargers.
Now that he’s here and the team has had a week to look him over, just what can the fans expect? Can this guy possibly live up to his hype and the sizable investment made by team owner Alex Spanos?
Put those questions to receivers coach Al Saunders and you get a long, thoughtful answer, the essence of which is “Most likely.”
Put the same questions to Johnson and the reply is an immediate and unqualified “Yes.”
“I know I’m in a different league, but playing against guys like Lester Hayes and Mike Haynes can only make me a better receiver,” Johnson said.
“I have something to prove to the fans and to myself, but I really believe I’m all-pro material. I can and will play well, and if I take advantage of this offense, I should catch 60 or 70 balls.”
Johnson (6-feet 1-inch, 195 pounds) played college football at Grambling, the same school which produced his new roommate, Charlie Joiner, holder of the record for most catches in a pro football career.
The Chargers are expecting some of Joiner’s expertise and work habits to rub off on Johnson. If they do, Johnson may well live up to his notices.
As Saunders sees it, there’s no question about Johnson’s physical gifts.
“He has excellent body control and can change directions quickly,” Saunders said, “but his greatest assets are some extremely soft hands.”
Ultimately, a receiver is only as trustworthy as his grip, and Johnson takes care to insure that his hands, which have never been hurt, stay nice and soft.
“I try to touch the girls a lot,” he said, smiling appreciatively at his own little joke.
Basketball also helps. A high school star in Baton Rouge, La., Johnson was good enough to merit basketball offers from Louisville and Notre Dame. But he realized he was never going to be an Isiah Thomas, so he decided to play football for Coach Eddie Robinson at Grambling.
Robinson used to stay after practice throwing him passes and showing him how to run routes.
He learned well, but he still has much to learn if he’s going to be all that Charger fans envision.
“Our offensive scheme is as good as it is because we have gifted people doing precisely what they’re supposed to do, just as Indiana University basketball players do,” Saunders said, launching into a lengthy examination of Johnson’s status.
“The question about Trumaine is how long it will take him to incorporate his athletic talent into our style of offense. The question isn’t whether he can do it, but how long it will take him to feel comfortable in our system.
“I’ll put it like this: When you get a new pair of shoes, you don’t walk as comfortably as you do in an old pair. Right now, Trumaine is still breaking in a new pair.”
Saunders said Johnson has some of the fluidity evident in the style of Chandler. The difference is Chandler has no hesitancy about what to do on a pass route because he knows the Charger offense. Johnson lacks the same degree of fluidity because he hasn’t had time to assimilate the offense.
“Our passing attack is predicated on disciplined, timed routes,” Saunders said. “It’s extremely important that each receiver runs his assigned route so that the quarterback sees the same thing every time. The point is, it takes a while for a receiver to get into that groove and develop the traits we’re looking for.”
Johnson said it’s not really so hard.
He used to watch pro games on TV, and he enjoyed studying the Chargers. It looked more complex on the tube than it has in person, he said.
“They’re bringing me along real fast, but I’m learning to make the adjustments,” Johnson said. “I’m hoping to make things easier for our quarterbacks. I’m expecting to be where I’m supposed to be and not surprise Dan (Fouts).”
Johnson said the demands of two-a-day workouts have taxed his endurance, making learning a bit harder, but basically he feels right at home.
“When your body gets tired, your mind starts to relax, but I can overcome that,” Johnson said. “I’m catching real well. I’d give myself a good grade on the way I’m catching the ball.”
Not to worry, Al Saunders.
“Oh, I’m not,” he said. “Trumaine is making great strides. We can see that for him, getting open is easy. But, in our offense, it still has to be timed to the quarterback’s drop, our blocking scheme, the release of the other backs, and the quarterback’s decision-making process, which is going from one receiver to the next in a progression.
“If any component is out of synch, it causes the whole play to fail. But that’s what training camp is for--to get it all meshed. Trumaine is learning his role in the timing of the offense.”
Johnson, who owns a 304-acre cattle ranch on the border between Louisiana and Mississippi, is a patient learner. His dad and brother are running the ranch, and he will learn as the opportunity presents itself.
He’s learning the Charger offense more briskly, but without showing outward signs of strain.
“I just try to be Trumaine,” he said. “I’ll be disappointed if I don’t become an all-pro, but the thing that I really hate would be if I never played for a championship team.
“I moved around a couple of times in the USFL and I didn’t have an opportunity to build a foundation for myself in the off-season. I feel a lot more secure here.”
That craving for stability seems to bode well for Johnson’s ability to fit in.
“The important quality for any player,” Saunders said, “is to be disciplined enough to realize he’s just one of 11 players in the offense.
“I can give you this analogy. Why do some people succeed on a diet and others fail? The answer is simple--mental discipline. When you’re a gifted athlete, one of the hardest things is to be disciplined enough within an overall team framework.”
Joiner has that discipline. The Chargers are betting that it’s catching.