NY Jets: 4 best-kept secrets on the team's current roster

4. Ty Johnson, RB, NY Jets

It's hard for running backs to fly under the radar, especially given the popularity of fantasy football in today's NFL. But Ty Johnson certainly fits the bill of a highly efficient runner who is widely unknown.

A sixth-round pick of the Detroit Lions in the 2019 NFL Draft, Johnson saw some playing time as a rookie and actually fared pretty well averaging 4.3 yards per carry on 63 attempts.

But when the Lions added D'Andre Swift in the following year's draft, he found himself slipping down the depth chart until he was waived just a few weeks into the season.

The Jets claimed him off waivers and, slowly but surely, Johnson found his way into the running back rotation. His breakout performance came during the team's 31-28 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 13.

While that game might be remembered more for the way it ended, Johnson's 104 yards were the most from any Jets running back since Isaiah Crowell's record-breaking outing in 2018.

Johnson finished the year as the Jets' most efficient rusher by a long stretch averaging 4.7 yards per carry behind a shoddy offensive line.

The former Maryland product seems primed for a spot in the backfield rotation in 2021 and is a perfect fit in new offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur's scheme.

If he shows the same promise he did a year ago, Johnson could firmly establish himself as one of the most exciting running backs in the NFL.