Johnson raves about Mosaic Stadium
REGINA Facilities matter to Micah Johnson.
The free-agent defensive tackle was impressed by everything from the locker-room to the players’ lounge to the training facilities that the Saskatchewan Roughriders have installed since moving into Mosaic Stadium in 2017.
He toured the state-of-the-art facility Wednesday after signing a one-year contract with the Riders on the opening day of CFL free agency.
“That matters to me because I can get into the hot tub and I can get a huge workout here at the facility,” Johnson said Wednesday while meeting with the Regina media. “Different things like that for me matter. We get fed two meals a day and that matters to me because I’m all about football. I feel that Saskatchewan is one of those teams that is trying to maximize that and make their players feel special.”
The money didn’t hurt, either. Justin Dunk of 3Downnation reported that the Calgary Stampeders offered Johnson $200,000 to re-sign. The Riders countered with $250,000, making Johnson the league’s highest-paid defensive player.
“I’m not going to say that money didn’t play a factor in the decision,” said Johnson, a three-time CFL all-star and two-time Grey Cup champion. “We’re not in the NFL where we’re getting millions of dollars, so money does factor into things.”
There have been some impressive salaries reportedly given to this year’s free agents, especially quarterbacks.
“When you start seeing players get what they are being paid and excited about the money they are being paid, that’s a big thing,” said Johnson, who was accompanied by his wife Saqouya and sons Jacorian (seven) and Micah Jr. (two) while in Regina.
“The guys in the room feel they are being valued and they feel like the team finds them worthy. When that happens, you have guys playing a lot harder.”
Johnson (six-foot-two, 278 pounds) is a unique blend of speed and power at defensive tackle. He recorded 14 sacks during the 2018 season, one behind the league-leading total of 15 registered by Saskatchewan’s Charleston Hughes. Jeremy O’day, the Riders’ vice-president of football operations and general manager, said Johnson was one of the players Saskatchewan had targeted in free agency.
“He does have a large contract, but he’s earned his contract,” O’day said.
Johnson, 30, leaves a Calgary franchise that is among the most successful in the league.
The Stampeders have appeared in four of the last five Grey Cup games, winning it all in 2014 and 2018.
“I’m just happy that we were able to win a championship with the players that we did,” Johnson said. “There is a time in everybody’s life where your course has run and you’ve done what you can do and you might not be seeing eye-to-eye exactly with the organization.
“I don’t think that it’s all on me. Calgary did what they needed to do and they put their money where they needed to. It’s a two-street way.”
The Riders put their money up and now it’s up to Johnson to deal with the heightened expectations of a lucrative contract.
“I really don’t feel any pressure from that,” Johnson said. “I know that I wake up every morning, I work out, and I’m constantly thinking of football. I’m watching film and doing everything I can to be successful. What I do on the field isn’t an accident.
“I’ll keep doing what I do and I expect the same results, if not better.”