Micah Johnson completed a two-sack performance to secure two points for the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
The Edmonton Elks’ last hope was extinguished on Friday night when Johnson toppled quarterback Cody Fajardo as the final seconds ticked away at Mosaic Stadium.
Johnson proceeded to simultaneously celebrate a sack and the Roughriders’ CFL-leading sixth victory in seven games this season.
“It might be my first one like that — a game-winning sack at the end,” he said. “I’ll have to check up on that.”
It might also be necessary to check Johnson’s birth certificate to verify that he is, in fact, 37.
Birthdate: June 22, 1988.
Yup … 37.
Remarkable.
“He’s still a force,” marvelled Head Coach Corey Mace, who once lined up alongside Johnson as a fellow defensive tackle with the Calgary Stampeders.
“I know he gives fits to a lot of offensive linemen around the league. He’s been doing it a long time.”
Johnson made his Canadian professional football debut with Calgary in 2013. After earning All-CFL honours for three consecutive seasons, he signed with Saskatchewan as a free agent in 2019.
He has subsequently spent all but one year with the Roughriders, in whose employ he received his fourth career All-CFL nod (in 2024).
“You always want to credit the older guys in the league who have been able to do it at a high standard for so long, because the tape has been out,” Mace said.
“There’s not much that you don’t know about them. When they know what’s coming and they can still get the job done, those are special players.”
Especially when you consider that the average length of a pro football career is in the three-year range.
“You never really see yourself playing for that long until it’s kind of happening,” Johnson said. “It’s still happening.”
The former University of Kentucky Wildcats star linebacker, who moved to the defensive line when he joined the Stampeders, is now in his 12th CFL season.
It would be Year 13 if not for a global pandemic that wiped out the 2020 campaign.
Factor in the NFL, where Johnson had stints with five teams over four seasons, and pro football has been part of his life since 2010.
“It’s just a blessing,” he said with a smile. “It’s one of those things I talk to God about. He’s still blessing me to come out here and still play.
“Like I tell people year after year, I feel good. It’s like I’m waiting to come out here and not feel good anymore, but it hasn’t happened yet.”
The secret?
“I work hard,” Johnson said. “I work in the off-season. Every off-season is all about football and training. I take care of my body during the week. I work out multiple times during the week.
“It’s just one of those things where I’ve been all about football since I started playing and since I came to the CFL. I think it’s one of those things that pays off. It’ll probably backfire at some point, but it’s football first for me.”
Saskatchewan is first in the league in sacks, with 20, heading into Saturday’s game against the host Montreal Alouettes.
The road trips can be long but, as is the case with Johnson himself, the grind never gets old.
“I still get the itch to come out here and compete,” he said. “I still want to be the best D-tackle in the league, year in, year out.
“For me, that fire is still there. It’s just about competing. We’re just out here trying to be the best interior D-linemen, year in and year out.”
With that in mind, Johnson “lifts his tail off” in the weight room, according to Mace. Of course, there are other factors at play.
“Sweatpants and keeping his legs warm throughout the week,” Mace said with a laugh.
“He’s always asking questions about ways he can win and understanding the concept of the defence.
“He’s trying to open up things for other people and open up things for himself and choosing his spots. There’s pre-snap ID stuff and understanding the protections he may get.
“With that, it’s just time, and he’s had plenty of it.”