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INDIANAPOLIS – On Feb. 4, 2007, on football’s biggest stage, rookie Charlie Johnson came into the game as a relatively unknown backup.
Midway through the Indianapolis Colts’ 29-17 Super Bowl victory over the Chicago Bears, he replaced injured right tackle Ryan Diem and was so effective that quarterback Peyton Manning said he didn’t notice Diem was missing.
“It was special,” Johnson said. “I wasn’t expected to play and the fact that I did get in there was great. Coming into the locker room after the game, there was like 100 voice messages from people saying that I was on the TV. That was special. It’s something I won’t forget.”
On Monday, the Colts will play their first game at Miami’s Land Shark Stadium since winnng Super Bowl XLI there – they take on the Dolphins – and Johnson has since cemented his status as an NFL starter. He was given the job over second-round draft pick Tony Ugoh during training camp, and he helped limit the Jacksonville Jaguars to one sack in last week’s season-opening 14-12 victory.
“Yeah, I feel good (about my progress),” said Johnson, 6-foot-4, 305 pounds, who was drafted in the sixth round out of Oklahoma State in 2006.
Thanks to numerous injuries suffered by the Colts through his career, Johnson, 25, has proved his versatility by starting 27 games at left tackle, right tackle and left guard. More than anything, he has proven reliable, while Ugoh, now the backup right tackle, has a reputation for taking plays off.
“I’ve been fortunate in the past to have played in a lot of games and to have been with the first group,” Johnson said. “I’ve had that comfort level with the other (starters).”
This week, assuming he overcomes a back injury that kept him from a day of practice, Johnson will have the task of fending off a defense that ranked eighth last year in sacks (40).
During last week’s 19-7 loss at Atlanta, the Dolphins’ 3-4 defense had two sacks.
The Colts are sure to face a formidable pass rush from linebackers Joey Porter and Jason Taylor, the league’s active sacks leader, while Johnson will also have to deal with right end Randy Starks.
Taylor, a six-time Pro Bowler and the 2006 Defensive Player of the Year, had many storied battles with the Colts in his first stint with the Dolphins.
After an injury plagued year with the Washington Redskins, Taylor returned to the Dolphins this summer and was moved from defensive end to linebacker.
“I think he’s done a pretty nice job,” Dolphins coach Tony Sparano said. “It’s not an easy adjustment. It’s an adjustment not everybody can make, but Jason’s a very good pro.
“He’s a very smart player and has done a nice job in the offseason program from a physical standpoint.”
Taylor, 35, is excited to be back with the Dolphins, who improved from 1-15 to 11-5 last season. The pass rush was a big part of that – Porter had an AFC-best 17 1/2 sacks last year – and Johnson wants to make sure he doesn’t get beat Monday.
“They’re a good team, as they proved last year, so we’ve got to go out and play and make some more memories like the last trip (to Miami),” said Johnson, who’s hopeful the left tackle job will be his for a long time.
