All-Pro running back Chris Johnson on staying clean and his secret to long TD runs

Chris Johnson Mr. Clean

Who knows more about staying clean than New York Jets running back Chris Johnson? One of the fastest players in NFL history, Johnson knows all about bursting through holes untouched and unsullied by opposing defenders.

“CJ2K” is the only player in NFL history with six TD runs of over 80 yards. ( No other player has more than three.) With three touchdown runs of 85 or more yards in 2009 (91, 89, 85), and one in 2012 (94), he’s also the only player in NFL history to register four career touchdown runs of 85 or more yards.

We spoke to him about his partnership with Mr. Clean’s Magic Eraser, how it feels to run a 4.24 40-yard dash and his monster 2009 season.

CJ2K! How is Mr. Clean doing these days?

“He’s pretty good. You gotta keep your whips and your clothes clean, and Mr. Clean is all about that.”

I made a mistake the other day. I bought these really nice white Polo shoes – low cut, crisp, the kind you wear without socks. I was looking good. That night, I had an unfortunate incident with a mud puddle on the way home. Guess who was there for me when I needed him the next day?

“Mr. Clean! The Magic Eraser does the trick, every time, especially with white clothes. It’s easy to get dirty and the Magic Eraser makes it easy to clean up.”

Coming out of East Carolina, you were drafted by the Titans and the experts were shocked. But since then, you’ve established yourself as one of the most explosive running backs ever. What bridged the gap and took you from being another fast guy who gets drafted, to being a fast guy who has a solid overall game and NFL career?

“The situation. I always ran track in the offseason and it gave me the opportunity to work on other stuff that comes natural to football; making people miss, my cuts. So I think that was an advantage I had so I didn’t have to work as hard on my footwork.”

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NFL Odds for Thanksgiving Day

It’s turkey day, and that of course means plenty of NFL football to go along with turkey and family gatherings. Check out our NFL Lines pages for all the odds for this weekend’s football action. In today’s games, the Detroit Lions try to break a long turkey day losing streak as the Houston Texans travel north. Houston is favored by three on the road.

RG3 is coming off a monster game and he leads the Washington Redskins into Dallas to face a Cowboys team that barely beat the Browns last week at home. Dallas is favored at home by three so this is basically a toss-up.

Finally, the New England Patriots travel to New Jersey tonight to take on the New York Jets. The Pats are favored by seven on the road even without Rob Gronkowski.

Enjoy the games!