The Titans’ season opener against the Jets will have some extra meaning.
In addition to Robert Saleh coaching his first Titans game — against his former team — and No. 4 pick Carnell Tate making his NFL debut, the Titans announced Friday that they’ll be inducting running back Chris Johnson into the team’s Ring of Honor at halftime.
The team’s announcement comes a month after Johnson said he was diagnosed with ALS.
“Honestly, I don’t know if you ever fully process it,” Johnson told “Good Morning America” of the diagnosis.
“At first, you’re in shock. Then you realize you have two choices. You can give up, or you can fight. I chose to fight.”
Johnson, a 2008 first-round pick, spent six years with the Titans from 2008-13 before finishing his career with the Jets and Cardinals.
The 40-year-old eclipsed 1,000 rushing yards every season with the Titans, and rushed for 7,965 across his six years, the fourth-most in franchise history.
“Chris Johnson holds a special place in the hearts of our organization and fans,” Titans controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk said in a statement. “His stats speak for themselves, and he will forever remain a leader in our record books, but the man behind the yardage deserves just as much celebration. We look forward to welcoming him home on Sept. 13 and officially inducting him into the Titans Ring of Honor.”
His best season came in 2009, where he earned the nickname “CJ2K” by rushing for 2,006 yards and winning Offensive Player of the Year.
Johnson then rushed for 663 yards in 2014 with the Jets before spending 2015-17 with the Cardinals.
The running back is the 20th player to be inducted into the Titans Ring of Honor, and said the love between him and the city of Nashville is mutual.
“I love Tennessee,” Johnson said in an interview with TennesseeTitans.com in 2024. “I come back all the time. The city embraced me, the fans loved me. Everyone around the city — and the whole state, for that matter — embraced me. Nashville, and Tennessee, will always be my second home. It will always be a place I come to.”
