The Kansas City Chiefs selected running back Emmett Johnson in the fifth round of the 2026 NFL draft, aiming to enhance their offensive talent. Johnson, a former Nebraska Cornhusker, has the potential to be a significant playmaker for the team.
Key points
Emmett Johnson was selected by the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2026 NFL draft.
He was the sixth running back chosen among 12 overall.
Johnson was picked in the fifth round as the 161st selection.
The Chiefs focused on defense early but added offensive talent later.
Johnson has potential to be a high-impact playmaker.
Emmett JohnsonNebraska CornhuskersKansas City Chiefs
KANSAS CITY, MO - AUGUST 28: Nebraska Cornhuskers running back Emmett Johnson (21) maneuvers with the ball during the Kansas City Classic game between the Cincinnati Bearcats and the Nebraska Cornhuskers on Thursday August 28, 2025 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, MO. (Photo by Nick Tre. Smith/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
During the 2026 NFL draft, the Kansas City Chiefs focused on defense in the early rounds, but the front office also took some fliers on offensive talent in the back half of the draft, including a fifth-round trade up to select running back Emmett Johnson with the 161st pick.
Johnson was the sixth back off the board among 12 taken at his position overall. Thatās not usually where a featured back is chosen on draft weekend, but the former Nebraska Cornhusker, if developed properly, has the tools to become a high-impact playmaker for the Chiefsā offense.
Athletic testing
Johnson entered the pre-draft process as a First Team All-American after totaling the fourth-most rushing yards in the FBS (1,450) with 12 touchdowns on 5.8 yards per carry in 2025. So his resume is certainly not what hurt his draft stock.
Emmett Johnson is an mid sized RB with mid range speed and agility and above average explosiveness. It's not a great overall profile, but it's not terrible, either. Always tough to project a role for guys almost dead in the middle. pic.twitter.com/rGiAZoDVyZ
At the NFL Scouting Combine, Johnson posted mediocre testing numbers, which seems to be the key factor to his āfallā down the draft board. At 5 feet 10 inches tall and 202 pounds, none of his speed, explosion or agility test results stood out as notably impressive.
One of the best things that Chiefs general manager Brett Veach has done in his tenure is find talent on Day 3 of the draft, and he might have done so again with Johnson.
A look at the film
Johnson does not have the breakaway speed of elite big-play running backs like Notre Dameās Jeremiyah Love, but he used good vision and anticipation to create explosive plays.
Q&A
What round was Emmett Johnson drafted in the 2026 NFL draft?
Emmett Johnson was drafted in the fifth round as the 161st pick.
Which team drafted Emmett Johnson in 2026?
Emmett Johnson was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs.
How many running backs were selected before Emmett Johnson in the 2026 NFL draft?
Emmett Johnson was the sixth running back selected among 12 taken at his position.
What college did Emmett Johnson play for before joining the NFL?
Emmett Johnson played for the Nebraska Cornhuskers before entering the NFL.
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Johnson had a lot of big plays in college, and most of them were set up with his vision and ability to read beyond the playbook. The defense looks to fit and fill between the pin and pull blockers, but Johnson is reading safety and bounces it. pic.twitter.com/TxtMCPoidt
The pin-and-pull concept that Nebrasaka runs here is designed to hit between the pulling guard and pulling center, and this is where the high safety flows. As the safety flows downhill, Johnson reads this and quickly cuts to the outside. From moving to fill, the safety is out of position, and Johnson flies by him for an explosive play.
Toward the end of the play, Johnson shows off his quickness and ability to make lateral cuts. This is a major aspect of his game.
Johnson does a good job of staying tight on the down blocker's hip. There are defenders in position, but because he stays tight to the line, he slips through the compact lane for a nice gain. pic.twitter.com/64e58K2Uci
Johnson uses a good mix of balance and quickness to avoid tacklers, slip through small gaps, and shift his way for extra yards.
Johnson recorded 370 receiving yards and three touchdowns during his final season in Lincoln as well. He was not a downfield threat, but he was a natural in the screen game.
Johnson is a good screen player. The LB has this play snuffed out, but Johnson does a good job of slipping back to the inside once he makes the catch and gets upfield. Makes another man miss before he goes down. pic.twitter.com/aYWYyX3oh4
The screen is not well blocked up front, and the middle linebacker has a free shot, but Johnson skillfully jukes his way out of danger, while effortlessly finding a seam in the defense.
Johnsonās ability to cut and find running lanes is why many believed he had the potential to be a Day 2 draft selection, and it made it difficult for defenders to get a bead on him.
Y-counter for Johnson.
He reads the guards' block while making the defenders choose a side. When the TE logs outside, it helps set up the run. Good work to avoid tacklers and create a play. pic.twitter.com/TJTAUvNJa2
On the Y-counter, Johnson thinks about taking it between the kickout block and the double team, but he recognizes the flowing overhang players, sells the inside, then jukes to the outside, and follows the tight end for a nice gain.
The patience to let the plays materialize was one of the greatest assets of Johnsonās game, showing an instinctive player capable of turning moderate gains into big plays.
Johnson also showed that he could find a way to turn nothing into something on more than one occasion.
The number of runs that Johnson managed just to prevent negative yards was impressive. pic.twitter.com/4ZeeaRE5w2
Even when plays were poorly blocked, Johnson had the quickness and shiftiness to get away from defenders and fight to find a way back to the line of scrimmage. With instant penetration through the right b-gap and little movement, Johnson tries to cut his way back to the line, but is cut off.
Instead of burying his head, he stays active and dances laterally down the line of scrimmage, and nearly finds a way to break into the endzone if not for an ankle tackle.
An instinctive runner, Johnson sees every aspect of the field and plays the game with a high football IQ.
To ice the game, Johnson needs a first down. With the box loaded, there will be an unblocked man. Johnson knows this, and at the last second, jukes and breaks free to the outside. Smart play to slide down and kill the clock pic.twitter.com/GK3G4pMYQt
Late in the game, Nebraska put the ball in his hands to ice the game. On the snap, the Cornhuskers run a duo-type look against a stacked box, asking for double-team blocks at the points of attack. With a linebacker ready and waiting, Johnson quickly cuts and bounces the run to the outside. Once he crosses the line to gain, he quickly drops down and gives himself up, avoiding a hit and sealing the victory for his team.
The bottom line
Johnson has the skill set to be an asset to Kansas City in the short and long term.
Kenneth Walker is set to be the Chiefsā lead back for the next four seasons, but a back like Johnson, who relies on shifty play and quickness to make plays, could be an excellent changeup to a back like Walker.
Johnson might not play a ton out of the gate, but with enough sprinkling in over the course of the season, he should be ready to be the full-time running back two by his second season in the NFL.
Johnson has the potential to be a home run pick, and behind Walker, there will be very little early pressure on him to produce, giving him the time he needs to develop and learn the Chiefsā scheme.
If the carryover is there from college to the pros, then the Chiefs could have a potent running back duo for the foreseeable future.