A couple days after the recent release of Alt-Football fixture Bruno Reagan, the Showboats added an all-conference receiver to fill his spot. The Showboats added a veteran of three NFL teams and former Alouettes Wide Receiver Jon’Vea Johnson to their roster becoming the 5th receiver added to the team this offseason.

Johnson comes to the USFL by way of Toledo, playing with NFL receivers Diontae Johnson and Cody Thompson. Johnson would earn All-Conference honors twice (2016,2018) in his career before going undrafted in the 2019 NFL Draft. Johnson would sign with the Cowboys in 2019, spending the season on injured reserve and 2020 on the practice squad before getting released after signing a futures contract in March of that year. Johnson would then spend three months with the Jaguars before being released again in June of 2021.

Johnson would then make his way to Chicago, where despite a strong camp, would be released and then signed to the Bears practice squad for two months. After limited NFL interest in 2021, a failed stint in the MLFB Johnson would travel north to the CFL, joining the Alouettes spending several months on their practice roster before being released in November of 2022.

For Johnson, the USFL offers an opportunity to for him to garner playing time as it appears he’s been a fringe NFL player for three seasons. With the return Rashard Davis and Derrick Dillon, in addition to Super Bowl champion JF3, and Alt-Football vet Vinny Papale, the Showboats currently sport one of the deeper Wide Receivers in the USFL. Johnson may have an uphill battle of making the roster, but the former Toledo Receiver now is in prime position to not only showcase his skills for USFL teams, but also NFL, CFL and XFL teams throughout the country.