Jordan Johnson’s advice to Bills’ Joe Andreessen

As a quarterback at Sweet Home High School, Johnson found role models and mentors such as Paul Schintzius, the Panthers’ boys basketball coach, and John Faller, the longtime football coach of the Panthers. ‘school.

He graduated from Sweet Home in 2012 and joined the University at Buffalo football team that year as a running back, where he played for former UB head coaches Jeff Quinn and Lance Leipold and running backs coach Matt Simon.

When he turned professional in football, he met Bills running backs coach Kelly Skipper. All of these coaches, and a few others, helped Johnson create his own image of the type of coach he wanted to be.

Johnson is now the running backs coach at the University of Pennsylvania, but the leadership of others helped him go to college and earn a degree in sociology. It also gave him a chance to play in the NFL.

The Bills begin organized team activities Monday at Orchard Park. Among the participating players will be 2018 Lancaster graduate Joe Andreessen, who signed with the Bills as an undrafted free agent following rookie minicamp. The former UB linebacker is the first Section VI or Monsignor Martin Athletic Association product to sign with the Bills since Johnson joined the franchise as an undrafted free agent seven years ago.

The Bills invited Andreessen to their rookie minicamp earlier this month. His signing has become a rallying point for high school football players and coaches in Western New York, who also understand how difficult it is to reach the NFL.

“He’s an inspiration to the kids below him, who can say, ‘It’s possible to do this,'” former Williamsville North coach Mike Mammoliti said. “The caveat you have to remember is all the work and opportunity to get into this position. There’s a bit of luck there too, no doubt. It’s not like we’re saying, “Turn up your heels and I’m here.” There is a lot of work and sacrifice to get there.

Seven years ago, Johnson was in the same situation as Andreessen. Johnson is eighth all-time in rushing yards at UB (2,212), but said it was a logical choice to sign with the Bills in May 2017.

“I grew up being more of a fan of the game, a fan of good players and student teams,” Johnson said. “Being a sponge of the game was my thing, but ultimately playing at UB and growing up in Buffalo and signing with any organization the Bills made sense, ultimately.”

Johnson was one of seven running backs and fullbacks in training camp in July 2017, along with LeSean McCoy, Jonathan Williams, Cedric O’Neal, Joe Banyard, Mike Tolbert and Patrick DiMarco.

Johnson’s time on the field this preseason with the Bills has been minimal, although he did score a touchdown in an exhibition game against the Detroit Lions at Orchard Park.

He was one of the last players cut by the Bills that year, but he knew the progression to the coaching job was almost natural. In his few months with the Bills, he also learned from head coach Sean McDermott.

“He’s had so much success because of his organizational management and how he gets players to buy in,” Johnson said of McDermott.

Johnson adopted what he learned from Skipper, particularly the then-Bills assistant’s understanding of the game, as a coach since 1989 at the college and NFL levels.

Johnson was able to practice and compete with McCoy, who he considers an “all-time great running back.”

“Any time you learn from a talent like that, you want to see what he does that’s great, so you can impose that on your players,” Johnson said. “He’s a once-in-a-generation talent. You want to know how to coach a player like that when you come across someone like that and how to get your players to be as good or better than what he accomplished.

Johnson began coaching football at Erie Community College in the fall of 2017, then served as a graduate assistant in 2018 at Fort Valley (Georgia) State. He served as running backs coach at Marist in 2019 and held the same position at Bucknell from 2020-23 before joining Penn’s staff in February.

“My ultimate goal is to teach and touch as many lives as possible while coaching,” Johnson said. “At some point, I want my daughter (Mila’Jae, who is 5) to see me coaching and doing what I love, and that’s important to me.”

Johnson gives Andreessen some advice. He was once that same local product who had the opportunity to join the Bills.

“Execute with confidence,” Johnson said. “You are here for a reason. There’s a reason there are veterans in the NFL, and there are only so many roster spots. Try to do as much as you can while knowing your place on the team. Understand that you are trying to make the team and stay as healthy as possible.