Johnnie Morton
| No. 87, 80, 84 | |||||||||||||
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| Position: | Wide Receiver | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
| Date of birth: | October 7, 1971 | ||||||||||||
| Place of birth: | Inglewood, California | ||||||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||||||
| Weight: | 193 lb (88 kg) | ||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||
| High school: | Torrance (CA) South | ||||||||||||
| College: | USC | ||||||||||||
| NFL Draft: | 1994 / Round: 1 / Pick: 21 | ||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||
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| Player stats at PFR | |||||||||||||
| Games played: | 182 |
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| Games started: | 156 |
| Receptions: | 624 |
| Receiving yards: | 8,719 |
| Touchdowns: | 43 |
| Player stats at NFL.com | |
Johnnie James Morton, Jr. (born October 7, 1971) is a former American football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons during the 1990s and 2000s. He played college football for the University of Southern California (USC), and was recognized as an All-American in 1993. Originally drafted by the Detroit Lions in the first round in the 1994 NFL Draft, he also played professionally for the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers of the NFL. Morton attempted a career in mixed martial arts fighting in 2007.
Morton was born in Inglewood, California. He attended South High School in Torrance, California, and played for the South High Spartans high school football team.
While attending the University of Southern California, Morton played for the USC Trojans football team from 1990 to 1993. He broke twelve USC team and Pacific-10 Conference records for receptions and receiving yards. Morton was nicknamed "Big Play Morton" by Tom Kelly, and "Johnnie Hero" by USC broadcaster Pete Arbogast, thanks to a game-winning touchdown pass Morton caught in the 1990 USC-UCLA rivalry game—a 23-yard strike from Trojans quarterback Todd Marinovich with 16 seconds left that gave the Trojans a 45-42 come-from-behind victory.
Detroit selected Morton in the first round (21st overall pick) of the 1994 NFL Draft, and he played for the Lions from 1994 to 2001. He would go on to achieve an important secondary role on a deep Lions' receiving corps that also featured Pro Bowl flanker Herman Moore and veteran Brett Perriman. After learning the ropes as a rookie in 1994, Morton became Detroit's featured slot receiver in 1995 and a key contributor on special teams as a kickoff/punt returner. Morton was part of one of the most prolific offenses in Detroit history that year, as the Lions would rack up 436 total points (second highest in the NFL) and end up with ten victories - appearing in the playoffs for the third straight season. He contributed 44 receptions on that team for 590 yards and 8 touchdowns. Perhaps his most memorable game occurred that same season during a classic Thanksgiving Day game in Detroit against the Minnesota Vikings. Moore (127 yards), Perriman (153), and Johnnie Morton (102) all eclipsed the 100-yard receiving mark, and Hall of Fame running back Barry Sanders rushed for 138 yards, and quarterback Scott Mitchell passed for 410 yards in a 44-38 Lions' shootout victory.
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