Jacksonville Jaguars select Antonio Johnson in the fifth round, 160th overall

Antonio Johnson, who twice earned All-SEC and All-America recognition at Texas A&M, was taken in the fifth round of the NFL Draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars on Saturday.

The defensive back was selected 160 overall.

Johnson becomes the highest-drafted A&M defensive back since Armani Watts was selected in the fourth round in 2018. Justin Evans was a second-round selection of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2017. A&M has not had a defensive back selected in the first round since cornerback Sammy Davis was taken by the San Diego Chargers in the 2003 Draft.

He’s the first A&M defensive back to be drafted since safety Donovan Wilson was taken in the sixth round of the 2019 Draft by the Dallas Cowboys.

Johnson was named to the Associated Press All-SEC in 2021 and 2022. He was also named a Pro Football Focus All-American in 2021 and 2022.

A good tackling defensive back with strong coverage skills, Johnson came to Texas A&M in the sixth-ranked 2020 recruiting class as a four-star prospect out of East St. Louis (Ill.) High School.

Playing primarily as a nickel back, Johnson completed his A&M career with 164 tackles, including 14 for lost yardage. He also had two sacks, eight passes broken up, four forced fumbles and an interception.

Though Johnson missed all of three games and most of another to injury in 2022, he still posted 71 tackles, four tackles for loss, a sack, a pass broken up and three forced fumbles.

He had at least eight tackles in six games and had double-figure tackle totals in four.

Johnson’s best season was in 2021 as a sophomore. He had 79 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, a sack, five passes broken up and forced a fumble. He also had an interception in a victory over Missouri.