“It still is surreal to me,” Johnson said. “I can’t even explain how it feels. I don’t have the words to explain how I feel, just being a small kid from Jackson, Louisiana, and I’m just blessed to be here.

“It means a lot, especially after not hearing my name called during the draft.”

The tears were flowing back in Louisiana on Saturday as cuts were being made around the NFL before a 4 p.m. roster deadline. Johnson and wide receiver Cam Sims were the only undrafted rookies to stick with the Redskins. Johnson has a group text with a number of family members, and he broke the news there instead of making individual calls.

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“I screamed, I cried,” Danny’s mother, Lisa Ferguson, said. “It was just a happy moment. That’s like a dream there.”

Johnson’s success isn’t a complete surprise to the family considering they have grown accustomed to his persistent hard work and determination, but they never envisioned an NFL career. He was an outstanding student at Southern who received a criminal justice degree and graduated high school with honors despite having a son, Aiden, when he was 16 years old. All the while he continued to excel in athletics. His belief in a future in football truly set in when Johnson was invited to both the Senior Bowl and the NFL Scouting Combine.

Johnson was a star cornerback at Southern despite switching positions once he got to the Football Championship Subdivision school. He played quarterback as a high school senior out of need and was a wide receiver before that. At 5-foot-9, 181 pounds, Johnson was undersized but still one of the best athletes on the field every week. A dynamic one-handed interception against Alcorn State as a senior earned him attention from NFL scouts. Redskins personnel executive Doug Williams, however, had been watching for years. During the offseason, Johnson trained with Ken Anio, a former Grambling State cornerback whom Williams has known for years. Johnson is also from the same hometown as Williams’s mother.

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Williams is a Grambling State product himself and has a respect for what historically black colleges and universities can produce. Ferguson remembers the criticisms her son received for not going to a bigger football program and how “they kind of looked at him like he couldn’t” make the league.

Williams is actually happy about those biases, in this case, because he believes Johnson could have played anywhere and the Redskins got a steal.

“You could say he probably could’ve gotten drafted,” Williams said, “but I’m going to be a little selfish and say I’m glad he didn’t because I don’t know if we would’ve [been able to select him].

“It’s unfortunate if guys feel that way [about historically black colleges and universities]. I can remember when I was a rookie way back when [in 1978], when I first got to Tampa and you had guys pulling people’s collars. … [Buccaneers linebacker] David Lewis made a statement. He said, ‘You guys in the [Southwestern Athletic Conference] didn’t play no football.’ I told him, ‘You might be right, but on the field on offense nothing starts until I tell them when to snap the ball.’ You’re looking at over 29 NFL Hall of Famers that went to historical black colleges. People that think that way, it’s unfortunate.”

Redskins Coach Jay Gruden continually gave Johnson more and more snaps as the summer, training camp and preseason wore on. Observers really took notice when the organization released cornerback Orlando Scandrick just months after signing the veteran to a free agent deal. The Redskins were in need of talent at the position after trading away nickel cornerback Kendall Fuller and allowing former starter Bashaud Breeland to walk in free agency. By the end of the preseason, Johnson was getting second-team reps.

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“He’s been playing inside and outside,” Gruden said. “And he’s just been a great, tough, competitive player throughout camp, not only as a defensive back but also on special teams. [He has] the ability to return the ball if need be. I just love his flexibility.”

Johnson’s older sister Jaquanna laughed and called him spoiled as the only boy with four sisters, but he never took that attitude to athletics. His sister and his mother described him as focused and determined. The family helped with Aiden so Johnson could continue to concentrate on school and athletics, but they saw him mature even more after having a son. Ferguson would say she didn’t raise any fools, and homework came first in the household.

Mother and son talk every day, but Johnson has wanted to avoid any distractions. The family wanted to attend a preseason game, but Johnson told them to wait. Now the plan is to come to FedEx Field for the home opener against the Indianapolis Colts on Sept. 16. There will be a large group wearing Johnson T-shirts, same as they did when he was in high school and at Southern. There is already anticipation for “Monday Night Football” during Week 5 at the Superdome in New Orleans, where Johnson has played many times.

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It’s a scenario the family never imagined a decade ago.