C.J. Gardner-Johnson says his year with the Detroit Lions was “hell,” and blasted the organization for lying to him.
C.J. Gardner-Johnson has never been afraid to share what’s on his mind, and that was very much the case this week when he was asked to reflect on his time with the Detroit Lions last season. Gardner-Johnson, who now plays for the Super Bowl -bound Philadelphia Eagles , called his time with the Lions “hell,” and claims he was lied to by “everyone” within the organization .
Gardner-Johnson, speaking to Detroit Free Press’ Dave Birkett in New Orleans, spoke about the tough season as it pertained to suffering a torn pectoral muscle in Detroit’s Week 2 game and rehabbing to finally get back on the field. Apparently, his frustration with the team was already there, as he opted to train away from Detroit.
“Truthfully, like in Detroit it was hell,” Gardner-Johnson said. “I went there just to — OK, when I got hurt I was like, ‘(Expletive) it.’ Truthfully. That’s why I didn’t go rehab there.”
Gardner-Johnson also reiterated how frustrated he was that when he got back from injury, part of his role had been supplanted by both Brian Branch at nickel and Ifeatu Melifonwu at safety—a feeling he didn’t hide at the time . But when talking about it this week, he took an extra shot at the Lions.
“I got benched because Iffy took my spot,” he said Thursday. “He had a good run and they thought — and he didn’t end up starting this year, which was crazy. You see where they’re at, you see where I’m at.”
[Note: Melifonwu “didn’t end up starting this year” partially because he missed the first 14 games of the 2024 season with an injury.]
Much of Gardner-Johnson’s frustration appears to be related to how free agency was handled. According to the veteran safety, the Lions had promised that they were going to bring him back in 2024, but obviously didn’t keep their word.
“I got lied to, so it was, whatever. I got told, respectfully, I was going to get brought back and didn’t get brought back,” Gardner-Johnson alleges. “And offseason went real for me, signing back here because I wasn’t really tripping on it. It all worked out.”
Gardner-Johnson speculated why the Lions chose not to re-sign him. He rebuffed the suggestion that if he had rehabbed in Detroit, the Lions would’ve been interested in retaining him, noting that he believed “the respect level wasn’t there.” Instead, he believes the team overreacted to his performance in the NFC Championship Game against the 49ers .
“I really felt like it was more so towards after the game they felt some way,” he said. “After like one missed tackle and a blown coverage that wasn’t on me. I guess I became the villain of the team.”
We’ll likely never know if any of these criticisms of the Lions are fair or not, but one thing is clear: if you were heading into the Super Bowl without a rooting interest, you might have a reason to hope the Kansas City Chiefs are victorious on Sunday now.