Colts to Waive Second-Year Defensive Tackle Ed Johnson
INDIANAPOLIS – As of Thursday, Ed Johnson's time with the Colts will be over.
Johnson, a second-year defensive tackle who signed with the Colts as a rookie free agent in the 2007 offseason, will be waived effective Thursday, Colts President Bill Polian said in a statement Wednesday night.
The statement reads as follows:
"We will, effective tomorrow, waive defensive tackle Ed Johnson.
"We consider every violation of a team rule or NFL policy on an individual case-by-case basis. If club discipline is appropriate, we consider the past record of the individual involved and the extent to which team rules were violated when imposing penalties.
"In this particular case, Ed was well aware that his past history required him to be in complete compliance with Club rules. He was repeatedly told this during the off-season. Along with his teammates, he was reminded as recently as yesterday of (Colts Head) Coach (Tony) Dungy's rules of behavior. Unfortunately, he chose to violate those rules.
"Given the circumstances surrounding Ed's original employment with the Colts, we feel in this case that we have no choice but to take this action."
Johnson was arrested Wednesday morning in Hamilton County, Ind., between midnight and 1 a.m. and charged with speeding and possession of marijuana, Polian announced early Wednesday afternoon just before Dungy's daily meeting with the media.
Speaking to the media, Polian and Dungy said discipline would be decided soon, with Dungy saying Johnson – who started 16 games last season and the regular-season opener this past Sunday against Chicago – would definitely miss Sunday's game against Minnesota.
The team had not yet determined early Wednesday afternoon who will play tackle in Johnson's absence, Dungy said.
"This came up today," Dungy said. "We'll make some plans and figure out what we're going to do."
Johnson, after entering training camp as a backup in 2007, moved into a starting role when veteran Anthony "Booger" McFarland sustained a season-ending knee injury during training camp.
Johnson then became the only Colts defensive lineman to start all 16 games last season, finishing eighth on the team with 63 tackles, 49 solos. He had a sack and eight quarterback pressures and also had a forced fumble and had a fumble recovery.
