NFL – New York Giants: Jakob Johnson and his odyssey

Jakob Johnson has already played a whopping 67 games in the NFL since 2019, and in 34 of them he was on the field from the start.

His career began in the best football league in the world with the New England Patriots. The Stuttgart native made 37 appearances for the Foxborough team within three years, even scoring a touchdown in 2020.

For the 2022 season, the fullback signed a contract with the Las Vegas Raiders, where he played 30 times in two seasons. At the end of the past season, his contract in the gambling metropolis finally ended.

Johnson was without a team for a large part of free agency, before the good news from a German NFL perspective became public on August 16: The New York Giants signed Johnson, which would mean a sixth year in the NFL – or so you would think. After that, a lot of back and forth followed, which may well have caused some confusion. ran unravels it.

August 16, 2024: New York Giants acquire Jakob Johnson

“The New York Giants have signed experienced tight end/fullback Jakob Johnson, who has played 67 games in his NFL career and made 34 appearances. In return, the Giants waived injured tight end Tyre Jackson,” the team's press release said. The franchise kept details of the contract under wraps.

In Week 2 of the preseason, the 29-year-old was able to play directly against the Houston Texans and showed a very good performance. Many experts expect that Johnson has now earned his permanent place in the 53-man squad.

August 27, 2024: Jakob Johnson does not survive roster cuts

But nothing came of it. During the roster cuts, in which the preseason squads are reduced to the 53 players in the game day squad, Johnson was also removed from the squad.

August 28: Giants sign Jakob Johnson to the practice squad

Just one day later, more good news followed. The traditional franchise signed the Swabians for their practice squad, which can include up to 16 players and an additional international professional. This also increased the hope of playing in the regular season, as teams can promote players from the practice squad to the matchday squad.

August 29, 2024: Giants move Jakob Johnson up to 53-man roster

Johnson finally made it to the 53-man roster on August 29. Center Austin Schlottmann was injured and his place in the squad went to Johnson. “He's been hurt and will be out for four weeks – probably even more. That's why we took this step,” explained head coach Brian Daboll.

September 1, 2024: Giants release Jakob Johnson again

Johnson had secured his place with the Giants for less than three days. As the New Yorkers secured the services of cornerback Adoree Jackson, a player had to go – and it was Johnson again.

September 2, 2024: Giants bring Jakob Johnson back into the practice squad

And now to the status quo. As was already speculated in the US media after the repeated dismissal, the Giants have brought Johnson back into the practice squad. This meant that wide receiver Miles Boykin had to pack his things.