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The Green Bay Packers managed to secure multiple high profile undrafted free agents at the conclusion of the 2025 NFL draft, with Kentucky’s off-ball linebacker Jamon Dumas-Johnson one of the headliners.
After spending the first three years of his college career at Georgia – a program Green Bay is very familiar with – Dumas-Johnson transferred to Kentucky for his final year. He played extensively for both the Bulldogs and the Wildcats, playing over 1,500 snaps between 2022 and 2024.
The 23-year-old, who stands just under 6-0 ⅔ tall and weighs 238 pounds, impressed in pre-draft athletic testing, scoring an 8.99 Relative Athletic Score (RAS) out of a possible 10, although he skipped the agility testing.
Dumas-Johnson posted "elite" grades for both speed and explosion, running a 4.60 in the 40-yard dash.
There is a reason Dumas-Johnson saw the field so much at two prominent SEC programs; he is a well-rounded player who can contribute in every aspect of linebacker play.
Defending the run is the bread and butter for linebackers, and Dumas-Johnson more than did his part, with 99 run stops across his college career.
The strength of his game in run defense is his ability to beat or evade blocks, making it look incredibly easy at times. The suddenness he possesses helps him to make quick movements to slip past blockers regularly. He can avoid opponents in space to stop screens from developing.
When having to take blockers on, he attacks with purpose, smacking them and not accepting his fate.
Dumas-Johnson shows a good feel for picking his gap in run defense, and when he has a clear path to the ball, he hits it decisively and can meet running backs in the hole. He can pick through trash at the line of scrimmage to find the ball, which is helpful in short yardage particularly.
He does a nice job of scraping laterally and his speed gives him the range to get out on the edge and chase the ball down.
As a blitzer, Dumas-Johnson shows explosive potential, with some eye-opening reps on tape. He has real juice coming downhill, can blast through backs in pass protection, and close to the quarterback.
He does well to convert speed to power and generate knock back on offensive linemen, and even if he is stonewalled initially, keeps fighting to not get blocked, eventually getting himself free and finding the ball.
There is patience and persistence to his blitzing as well, as he can delay and wait for an opportunity to appear, or stunt from the edge all the way past the center and finding a gap to dart through.
Across his four-year college career, Dumas-Johnson amassed 12 sacks and 52 pressures, impressive numbers which display his potential impact as a blitzer at the next level.
In coverage, his speed and twitch allow him to stay with opponents, carrying them up the seam if needed, as well as stop and start with them as they try to shake him. He also uses physicality to his benefit, chipping pass catchers as they get to him, slowing them down.
Dumas-Johnson is visibly mentally engaged in zone coverage, with his head on a swivel, constantly scanning for opponents in his vicinity.
He feels routes come into his zone and shades over towards them, and generally does a good job not overcommitting to a route too early, making sure he is in position to peel off if necessary.
His ability to read the quarterback’s eyes is helpful in coverage as he reacts quickly to where the passer indicates they may be targeting.
Just from watching Dumas-Johnson it is clear he has a mental understanding of the game and it is not too fast for him. He was the signal caller at both Georgia and Kentucky and his football intelligence is on show regularly.
He routinely stops checkdowns or QB scrambles becoming big gains because he spots them early and triggers, limiting the damage. There are instances on tape of him sniffing out a trick play and picking up the intended target, stopping it dead in its tracks.
Dumas-Johnson plays read options well with the quarterback out on the edge, managing to play both the QB keeper and the potential dump off.
As a tackler, he does not go flying in recklessly, sizing it up before making his move. One of his best plays was on a 4th and 3 where he quickly got out on the edge to pick up a running back in the flat, avoiding traffic on the way, and made a shoestring tackle to stop him just short of the marker.
He was described as a leader and projects to have special teams value due to his athleticism and the position he plays.
Of course, there are weaknesses to Dumas-Johnson’s game, or he would not have gone undrafted, and they mostly relate to a lack of consistency in all aspects. While he is solid in all areas, he is not outstanding in any facet.
His overall PFF defense grade declined each year from 80.9 as a freshman at Georgia to just 62.6 in his lone season at Kentucky. This is the opposite of what teams want, as they look for ascending players who are on track to play their best football as a pro.
A lot of his better football was on the 2023 and 2022 tape, although in fairness, Kentucky’s defense as a whole was a huge disappointment in 2024, so the system could have suppressed him.
In run defense, Dumas-Johnson can take the wrong angle to the football, opening up lanes for the running back which he could have filled, or allowing them to get to the edge before he can cut it off. He gets trapped inside too often, not sensing an outside run early enough.
He can guess wrong when attacking the line of scrimmage, either in terms of which gap he chooses, or not realizing who has the ball. Dumas-Johnson does not have plus size, and this means he can get swallowed up when taking on the line of scrimmage.
This also comes into play as a blitzer. When asked to mug up the line of scrimmage and attack, he can get handled by interior linemen, and if it is a run, he can be easily turned and walled out of the play. He does not have the size or power to line up on the edge and rush versus a tackle.
There are instances in coverage of him having blinkers on, locking on to the route he has chosen to cover and not noticing something else developing or that the quarterback has begun to scramble. He could do a better job of getting depth in his drop to stop the ball going over his head.
His instincts are not bad, but there are still bad moments. Dumas-Johnson bites on play fakes at times, and can be guilty of coming downhill towards a QB who has escaped too quickly, leaving receivers open behind him for an easy completion.
On his Kentucky tape, there were times where he lacked the kind of urgency and ‘hair on fire’ playstyle he showed more regularly at Georgia. He would not get involved in gang tackling an opponent when he could have, or sometimes failed to get the defense lined up quickly enough.
Dumas-Johnson was not a consistent or reliable tackler in college, missing 15.5% of his attempts throughout his four seasons and never missing less than 14.5% in a season once he became a starter. His size works against him as he lacks some stopping power.
While he should in theory be able to contribute on special teams, he did not play on kick or punt coverage in 2024.
Based on the body of work he put together across three seasons at two prominent SEC schools, it is somewhat surprising Dumas-Johnson was not drafted.
He should at worst be a solid backup linebacker at the NFL level and could even potentially start in time, although whether he is strong enough in coverage to play all three downs is something of a question mark.
Green Bay’s linebacker room is pretty crowded after the addition of Isaiah Simmons, but Dumas-Johnson has the talent to make the team and eventually get on the field.
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Packers UDFA profile: Jamon Dumas-Johnson has talent to make the 53
Continue reading...
After spending the first three years of his college career at Georgia – a program Green Bay is very familiar with – Dumas-Johnson transferred to Kentucky for his final year. He played extensively for both the Bulldogs and the Wildcats, playing over 1,500 snaps between 2022 and 2024.
The 23-year-old, who stands just under 6-0 ⅔ tall and weighs 238 pounds, impressed in pre-draft athletic testing, scoring an 8.99 Relative Athletic Score (RAS) out of a possible 10, although he skipped the agility testing.
Dumas-Johnson posted "elite" grades for both speed and explosion, running a 4.60 in the 40-yard dash.
There is a reason Dumas-Johnson saw the field so much at two prominent SEC programs; he is a well-rounded player who can contribute in every aspect of linebacker play.
Defending the run is the bread and butter for linebackers, and Dumas-Johnson more than did his part, with 99 run stops across his college career.
The strength of his game in run defense is his ability to beat or evade blocks, making it look incredibly easy at times. The suddenness he possesses helps him to make quick movements to slip past blockers regularly. He can avoid opponents in space to stop screens from developing.
When having to take blockers on, he attacks with purpose, smacking them and not accepting his fate.
Dumas-Johnson shows a good feel for picking his gap in run defense, and when he has a clear path to the ball, he hits it decisively and can meet running backs in the hole. He can pick through trash at the line of scrimmage to find the ball, which is helpful in short yardage particularly.
He does a nice job of scraping laterally and his speed gives him the range to get out on the edge and chase the ball down.
As a blitzer, Dumas-Johnson shows explosive potential, with some eye-opening reps on tape. He has real juice coming downhill, can blast through backs in pass protection, and close to the quarterback.
He does well to convert speed to power and generate knock back on offensive linemen, and even if he is stonewalled initially, keeps fighting to not get blocked, eventually getting himself free and finding the ball.
There is patience and persistence to his blitzing as well, as he can delay and wait for an opportunity to appear, or stunt from the edge all the way past the center and finding a gap to dart through.
Across his four-year college career, Dumas-Johnson amassed 12 sacks and 52 pressures, impressive numbers which display his potential impact as a blitzer at the next level.
In coverage, his speed and twitch allow him to stay with opponents, carrying them up the seam if needed, as well as stop and start with them as they try to shake him. He also uses physicality to his benefit, chipping pass catchers as they get to him, slowing them down.
Dumas-Johnson is visibly mentally engaged in zone coverage, with his head on a swivel, constantly scanning for opponents in his vicinity.
He feels routes come into his zone and shades over towards them, and generally does a good job not overcommitting to a route too early, making sure he is in position to peel off if necessary.
His ability to read the quarterback’s eyes is helpful in coverage as he reacts quickly to where the passer indicates they may be targeting.
Just from watching Dumas-Johnson it is clear he has a mental understanding of the game and it is not too fast for him. He was the signal caller at both Georgia and Kentucky and his football intelligence is on show regularly.
He routinely stops checkdowns or QB scrambles becoming big gains because he spots them early and triggers, limiting the damage. There are instances on tape of him sniffing out a trick play and picking up the intended target, stopping it dead in its tracks.
Dumas-Johnson plays read options well with the quarterback out on the edge, managing to play both the QB keeper and the potential dump off.
As a tackler, he does not go flying in recklessly, sizing it up before making his move. One of his best plays was on a 4th and 3 where he quickly got out on the edge to pick up a running back in the flat, avoiding traffic on the way, and made a shoestring tackle to stop him just short of the marker.
He was described as a leader and projects to have special teams value due to his athleticism and the position he plays.
Of course, there are weaknesses to Dumas-Johnson’s game, or he would not have gone undrafted, and they mostly relate to a lack of consistency in all aspects. While he is solid in all areas, he is not outstanding in any facet.
His overall PFF defense grade declined each year from 80.9 as a freshman at Georgia to just 62.6 in his lone season at Kentucky. This is the opposite of what teams want, as they look for ascending players who are on track to play their best football as a pro.
A lot of his better football was on the 2023 and 2022 tape, although in fairness, Kentucky’s defense as a whole was a huge disappointment in 2024, so the system could have suppressed him.
In run defense, Dumas-Johnson can take the wrong angle to the football, opening up lanes for the running back which he could have filled, or allowing them to get to the edge before he can cut it off. He gets trapped inside too often, not sensing an outside run early enough.
He can guess wrong when attacking the line of scrimmage, either in terms of which gap he chooses, or not realizing who has the ball. Dumas-Johnson does not have plus size, and this means he can get swallowed up when taking on the line of scrimmage.
This also comes into play as a blitzer. When asked to mug up the line of scrimmage and attack, he can get handled by interior linemen, and if it is a run, he can be easily turned and walled out of the play. He does not have the size or power to line up on the edge and rush versus a tackle.
There are instances in coverage of him having blinkers on, locking on to the route he has chosen to cover and not noticing something else developing or that the quarterback has begun to scramble. He could do a better job of getting depth in his drop to stop the ball going over his head.
His instincts are not bad, but there are still bad moments. Dumas-Johnson bites on play fakes at times, and can be guilty of coming downhill towards a QB who has escaped too quickly, leaving receivers open behind him for an easy completion.
On his Kentucky tape, there were times where he lacked the kind of urgency and ‘hair on fire’ playstyle he showed more regularly at Georgia. He would not get involved in gang tackling an opponent when he could have, or sometimes failed to get the defense lined up quickly enough.
Dumas-Johnson was not a consistent or reliable tackler in college, missing 15.5% of his attempts throughout his four seasons and never missing less than 14.5% in a season once he became a starter. His size works against him as he lacks some stopping power.
While he should in theory be able to contribute on special teams, he did not play on kick or punt coverage in 2024.
Based on the body of work he put together across three seasons at two prominent SEC schools, it is somewhat surprising Dumas-Johnson was not drafted.
He should at worst be a solid backup linebacker at the NFL level and could even potentially start in time, although whether he is strong enough in coverage to play all three downs is something of a question mark.
Green Bay’s linebacker room is pretty crowded after the addition of Isaiah Simmons, but Dumas-Johnson has the talent to make the team and eventually get on the field.
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Packers UDFA profile: Jamon Dumas-Johnson has talent to make the 53
Continue reading...
