Odd man out: 'Bottled up' Pepper Johnson waits for coordinator opportunity

Pepper Johnson

Pepper Johnson is a Super Bowl-winning linebacker, an NFL position coach for the last 15 years and has a total of five Super Bowl rings. So what’s keeping him from getting a job as a coordinator?

Johnson would like to know himself. He spent most of his career working under Bill Belichick coaching the Patriots' defensive line before moving to Buffalo to work under Doug Marrone, who resigned following the Bills' regular-season finale.

MORE: Bears to hire John Fox | Spagnuolo returns to Giants | Callahan leaves Cowboys

"I feel bottled up," Johnson, the former Giants linebacker, told the Daily News on Thursday. "I have a lot of knowledge and a lot of information that I feel like I just have to keep to myself."

Johnson thought his time was coming when the Giants called him for an interview last week after the team fired Perry Fewell as defensive coordinator. Instead, the Giants hired former Rams coach Steve Spagnuolo.

"Moving away from the Patriots, spending a year in Buffalo, I was hoping it would open doors and open some eyes, that more people would be watching," Johnson said, "and (that some team) will give me a call before all this is said and done."

For now, Johnson looks to be out of a job. The Bills hired Rex Ryan over the weekend while Johnson was waiting to hear back from the Giants. While he was originally told he would still be on the staff if he didn’t get the Giants job, Johnson was not named with the rest of Ryan's staff.  

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