NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Stafon Johnson has a game ball from his NFL debut. He also had his dislocated right ankle repaired, and Tennessee Titans coach Jeff Fisher isn't ready to call the rookie running back's season over just yet.
Johnson tweeted Sunday that he was fresh out of surgery. This is the man whose senior season at USC was ended in September after a barbell crushed his neck and larynx, leaving him to learn how to talk again and trying to play his way into the NFL as an undrafted free agent. He promised before surgery that he'll be back better than before.
Fisher said a couple hours later that the doctors "got it all put back together."
Johnson's injury opens the door
Stafon Johnson faces another long recovery from injury, and his misfortune could give undrafted rookie RB LeGarrette Blount a better opportunity to make the team. **More ...**
The coach, who's a USC alum like Johnson, was hesitant to share the extent of the rookie's injury, but he said the running back also broke his fibula. Asked if the injury means Johnson's season will be ended by the Titans placing him on injured reserve, Fisher said that was hard to say.
"This could be eight to 12 weeks (of recovery time)," Fisher said. "We just don't know."
That timeline seems optimistic.
Johnson's injury during Saturday night's 20-18 loss at Seattle was so gruesome that Fisher said he thought the rookie's shoe simply had come off and was being held on by some loose tape. Johnson had just made a catch on the final play of the third quarter when Seahawks defensive back Kam Chancellor hit him high and spun him around, forcing the running back to land on his right leg.
Johnson stood up, then started pointing down at his foot before he was surrounded by trainers and doctors.
"That kind of gives you a sense of how intense the game is and how the emotions are going and the contact you get caught up, and you don't know," Fisher said.
Johnson was carted off the field while his teammates knelt and prayed for him. He returned with the Titans who arrived back in Nashville around 6:30 a.m. CT and tweeted Sunday afternoon that he was out of surgery. Johnson called it a "bump in the round."
Fisher said the rookie showed with three carries for 23 yards and two catches for 12 yards that he can play in the NFL.
"(He) has an amazing pain tolerance and wants to get back on the field as fast as he can," Fisher said.
That was the lone injury for a Tennessee team trying to keep the same good spirits after having to fly to Seattle and back for a preseason game. Vince Young was sharp in completing his first five passes for 78 yards before being intercepted on a ball he later admitted he should have run for a first down.
The Titans' first-team offense, behind Young and Chris Johnson, moved right down the field, going 79 yards in 10 plays before the All-Pro running back scored and went to the bench with a 7-0 lead. Young followed Johnson to the sideline one series later, still leading 7-0.
Tennessee's defense looked too much like last season's unit that ranked next to last in the NFL in passing yards allowed, giving up 233 yards with cornerback Cortland Finnegan, safety Vincent Fuller, defensive tackle Tony Brown and rookie end Derrick Morgan all still recovering from injuries.
New addition Jason Babin did have one of the Titans' two sacks, and Ryan Mouton and Alterraun Verner -- competing with Jason McCourty to start opposite Finnegan -- did intercept a pass each. But Mouton also missed the tackle on former Tennessee wide receiver Mike Williams, who went 51 yards for a Seattle touchdown catch.
Fisher was happy that Mouton bounced back from that play with the interception on the next series.
"It's good to see him respond like that," Fisher said.
Backup quarterback Kerry Collins didn't play, letting the Titans look at Chris Simms and rookie Rusty Smith. Simms was sacked twice and lost a bobbled snap out of the shotgun. Smith had a pass intercepted with 25 seconds left. But Fisher didn't sound worried, saying the Titans didn't game-plan for the Seahawks' defense that put some unique pressure on the quarterback.
And about that long trip just for a preseason game? Fisher said the team tried to approach the trip as preparation for the regular season, when the Titans will visit the San Diego Chargers on Oct. 31. He did note that kicking off at 10 p.m. ET creates problems for teams coming from the East Coast.
Fisher said he would like to think there's a better way to schedule preseason games.
"I know Miami's having a rough go because they play Tampa and Jacksonville back to back," Fisher said.
Fisher also said rookie running back LeGarrette Blount has been excused from the team for personal reasons. Blount left the Titans on Sunday, and Fisher said the running back will return Wednesday.
Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press
