Emmett Johnson NFL Draft Profile

On a dark day, Emmett still shone bright. | Stephen Bruce

Height: 5’11”
Weight: 200–202 lbs
Age: 22
2025 Production: 251 carries, 1,451 rushing yards (5.8 YPC), 12 rushing TDs; 46 receptions, 370 receiving yards, 3 receiving TDs.

Accolades: 2025 First-Team All-American (On3, CBSSports.com, Sports Illustrated, Sporting News)
Second-Team All-American (Walter Camp, The Athletic)
First-Team All-Big Ten
Big Ten Running Back of the Year.

Only Player in Program History to Have 100 Rushing Yards & 100 Receiving Yards in the Same Game (2025 at UCLA)

Emmett Johnson had an incredible season last year. Look at this stuff from Huskers.com about his production:

In 2025, Johnson led the nation scrimmage yards per game (151.8) and all-purpose yards per game (151.8), ranked second in total yards from scrimmage (1,821) and receptions by a running back (46), fourth in rushing yards (1,451) and rushing yards per game (120.9), sixth in carries (251), 11th in receiving yards by a running back (370) and 17th in total touchdowns (15). Johnson also led the nation by accounting for 40.7 percent of his team’s total yards during the regular season.

Johnson was the foundation of Nebraska’s offense in 2025. He was the only player on the team that you could count on to play good football throughout the 12 games he started. Continually found yardage where there was none. He had incredible patience and cutting ability, and he was the one guy that you would never want to play in that game called Kill the Carrier.

He skipped the bowl game and declared for the NFL Draft. Which was too bad because Nebraska could have used him to churn up some yardage and time in a game where they were clearly outmatched and had a defense that didn’t know how to play defense. Anywhoooooo..

Strengths

• Elite Vision and Patience: Johnson is an incredibly decisive runner with a natural feel for pressing the line of scrimmage, allowing blocks to develop before hitting the gap. He excels in both gap and zone concepts.
• Dual-Threat Weaponry: His receiving chops are exceptional for the position. With 46 catches in 2025 (the second-most ever by a Nebraska RB), he shows natural hands, route awareness, and the ability to line up in the slot or run routes out of the backfield.
• Short-Area Quickness and Elusiveness: A true joystick in tight spaces, his lateral agility and sudden jump-cuts force missed tackles consistently.
• Contact Balance: Despite a thinner frame, he runs with a low pad level, routinely breaking arm tackles and falling forward to finish runs.
• Workhorse Durability: He proved he could handle a massive volume—logging an 1,800+ scrimmage yard season in the physical Big Ten—without his efficiency or effort dropping late in games.

Weaknesses

• Pass Protection: The most consistent red flag in his scouting reports. He struggles with his anchor against blitzing linebackers and needs to improve his recognition of pressure packages to be a trusted every-down back.
• Lack of Breakaway Speed: He ran a 4.56 at the combine. He does not possess the elite top-end gear to consistently turn second-level entries into 60-yard touchdowns, often getting caught from behind by faster defensive backs.
• Average Play Strength: At 200 pounds, he lacks the raw power to consistently blow through heavy contact or move the pile in short-yardage and goal-line situations.
• Experience Sample Size: He only has one year of dominant, feature-back production at the college level, breaking out at age 22 after serving in a rotational capacity earlier in his career. (In other words, he was managed by idiots for part of his college career and it may effect his NFL prospects.)

Where’s He Gonna Go?

Johnson’s lack of breakaway speed is the main characteristic that will limit his top end draft ability.

Jeremy Pernell at Sports Illustrated projects him from third to fifth round, stating:

While he doesn’t project as a clear RB1 at the NFL level due to average top-end athletic traits, his floor remains solid. He brings value as a complementary piece to a backfield, with his reliability as a runner and his impact in the passing game giving him a defined role. In the right system, he projects as a steady contributor who can handle volume in stretches while fitting comfortably into a rotation.

NFL.com ranks him as the fourth-best running back in the draft

Johnson is a hard-charging, gap-scheme runner. He brings a steady dose of urgency, decisiveness and fairly predictable run tracks. Johnson’s production and game-by-game consistency stand out despite average size and top-end speed.

Walterfootball.com ranks him as the eighth-best running back:

Johnson flashed some toughness and running ability. It would help him to gain some strength for the next level.

DraftNation.com sees him as a Day 2 or early Day 3 selection.

Emmett Johnson enters the 2026 NFL Draft as a well-rounded, high-production running back prospect whose combination of vision, physicality, and versatility projects well to the next level. With his ability to contribute both on the ground and through the air, Johnson has the tools to become a reliable NFL starter and a key piece of an offense at the next level.

Rotoviz says Johnson was clocked in the 4.4s at his Pro Day, and has lots of optimistic things to say about him:

But if it is of any consolation, Johnson is still being projected to be selected early on Day 3, which aligns more closely with Spears (third round; 81st overall) and White (fourth round; 130th) rather than Benjamin, who did not come off the board until the final round of the 2020 draft.

Potential NFL Team Fits

• Minnesota Vikings: The hometown connection is very real. The Minneapolis native (and Holy Angels alum) recently had a “Top 30” pre-draft visit with the Vikings. Johnson himself stated recently that Minnesota is “definitely interested.” With Aaron Jones and Jordan Mason not under contract beyond this season, the Vikings are actively looking to reset their running back room.
• Denver Broncos: Sean Payton is heavily scouting the Day 2 and Day 3 running back market. Johnson’s profile as a high-volume receiver out of the backfield fits perfectly into the archetypes Payton historically targets for his offensive system.
• Chicago Bears: Evaluators covering the Bears have noted Johnson is a strong schematic fit for Chicago’s rotation. The front office is looking for dual-threat situational backs who can immediately contribute in the passing game while spelling early-down runners.
• Zone-Heavy Schemes (Packers, Buccaneers, Seahawks): Teams that rely heavily on outside-zone and mid-zone rushing concepts will covet his patience and one-cut ability.