Josh Johnson bounced around the NFL for 12 seasons and is now set for the next stage of his football journey. Johnson signed with the XFL and was assigned to the Los Angeles Wildcats for the 2020 season, highlighting three quarterbacks that were assigned teams Friday. Former Carolina Panthers quarterback Taylor Heinicke was assigned to the St. Louis Battlehawks and former Marshall quarterback Chase Litton was assigned to the Seattle Dragons.
Johnson will compete with Luis Perez for the starting quarterback job in Los Angeles. Perez was assigned to the Wildcats in October prior to the XFL Draft. Johnson started three games for the Washington Redskins last season after Alex Smith and Colt McCoy were lost for the season with injuries and he completed 57.1 percent of his passes for 590 yards, three touchdowns and four interceptions for a 69.4 passer rating. He spent the first half of the season as the Detroit Lions No. 2 quarterback before being released in October.
A fifth-round pick in the 2008 NFL Draft by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Johnson has played for 13 NFL teams, including two different stints with the San Francisco 49ers and Cincinnati Bengals. He has also played for the Sacramento Mountain Lions of the defunct United Football League and was on the initial roster of the San Diego Fleet of the Alliance of American Football before signing with the Redskins. He has completed 55.2 percent of his passes for eight touchdowns and 14 interceptions in 33 career NFL games.
Heinicke went undrafted in the 2015 NFL Draft, signing with the Minnesota Vikings and was on their practice squad for a few years. he had a brief stint with the New England Patriots before signing with the Houston Texans in 2017, making his NFL debut and completing a pass. He played in six games for the Panthers in 2018, completing 61.4 percent of his passes for 320 yards, one touchdown, and three interceptions and was released prior to the 2019 season. He'll compete with Jordan Ta'amu for the starting quarterback job.
Litton ranked fifth in school history in career passing yards (8,332) and fourth in career passing touchdowns (72) at Marshall. He has never taken an NFL snap after having practice squad stints with the Kansas City Chiefs and Jacksonville Jaguars. He'll compete with Brandon Silvers for the starting quarterback job.