Johnathan Joseph Is On Top

If you peel back the curtain to see what’s happening behind all the Deshaun Watson, DeAndre Hopkins and J.J. Watt related news, one of the stalwarts of the Houston Texans’ defense is quietly setting records and cementing his place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

On Sunday night, in front of a nationally televised audience, Johnathan Joseph, the seventh year Texan, notched his 50th game with multiple pass deflections, surpassing former Tampa Bay Buccaneer Ronde Barber to take the all-time NFL lead.

When asked about it, Joseph’s humility shone through.

J-Jo:

Guys like Ronde Barber, Champ Bailey, those are guys I look up to. It means a lot to have this longevity. I can’t take it in right now, but it’s something I can tell my kids one day. At the end of the day, I feel like if you work hard and it continues to be your job, those things will come to you. I don’t really get pumped up as much for things like that. But at the end of the day, just to be in the rare conversation with guys like Ronde and the rest of those guys, it means a lot to me just because of the hard work that I put in.

As far as overall passes defended, Joseph currently has 192, placing him third on the all-time list per Pro Football Reference. According to those numbers, J-Jo only needs 12 more to take the all-time lead from Champ Bailey. Joseph currently has 11 on the season. He’s deflected 116 in his time with Houston, a franchise record.

The 13-year starter has now played in 196 games, notched 637 solo tackles, forced 7 fumbles, recovered 6 fumbles (and advanced those recovered fumbles 145 yards), snagged 30 interceptions, and scored 7 touchdowns.

Johnathan Joseph is an all-time great.