Defensive lineman Micah Johnson moves from player to coach with Roughriders

Micah Johnson was still among the CFL’s best defensive linemen, but the 37-year-old has decided it’s time to enter a new phase of his life.

“When I left the field last, I didn’t have intentions that it was my last time playing. For me, it was just the opportunity and I came to this decision shortly,” Johnson said. “I was just getting the feeling that you keep playing and seeing guys your age coaching with you and (coaches) are half the guys you played with, seeing guys your age move on, I was getting the feeling I was getting behind in the next phase of my life by hanging onto football.

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“That was a heavy factor for me.”

The three-time Grey Cup champion was signed by the Riders as a free agent in 2019 and played 80 games for the team over five seasons. But just because he won’t be on the field in 2026 doesn’t mean he’s done with football. Johnson, who moved to Regina along with his family on a permanent basis in 2023, is taking on the role of defensive line coach for the Roughriders.

The Columbus, Ga., product spent three seasons in the NFL before coming to the CFL in 2013. He spent six seasons in Calgary before joining the Riders in 2019. He would spend the rest of his career in Saskatchewan except for the 2022 season with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

“It’s been a real wild ride when I think about it. Everything I have been through to get to this point. From college to how down I was getting cut from three or four NFL teams and here I am thinking my football career was over because I hadn’t heard much about the CFL by that point,” Johnson said. “My oldest son, I had just had him and we had to start making some money eventually. I couldn’t get cut anymore down there, so I decided to come to Calgary, which was one of the best decisions I made.”

The defensive tackle finished his career with 71 sacks and 309 tackles in 178 CFL games. He recorded six sacks in 2025 and was a key part of the Riders’ rushing defence that was the best in the league.

In 2025, Johnson became the first 37-year-old defensive player to earn All-CFL honours.

He said it is “a beautiful opportunity” to get a chance to choose to retire.

“I see how it doesn’t come because as a competitor, you want to keep doing it as long as you can. I felt that in my spirit I wanted to keep playing but coaching is something I have always been thinking about,” Johnson said. “(The transition) is not something you fear but it’s kind of something where you’re going to have to stop playing one day and what’s that transition going to be like.”

The opportunity comes under head coach Corey Mace, who was a teammate of Johnson’s back in Calgary before coaching him there as well.

“We’ve had these conversations when I was coaching on different teams and he was playing on a different team, that relationship has been there and understanding what he wants to do,” Mace said. “Just understanding his understanding for the game of football as it pertains to the CFL and the defensive line position, there’s a lot of knowledge in there. He’s excellent with his teammates and he garners a lot of respect in that locker room.”

Making the transition from the locker room to the coaches’ room can be a tricky one, but Mace believes Johnson has the respect from the team and his own work ethic to make it a seamless one.

“Playing as long as Micah has played and you see his family is here, he has a lot of responsibility outside of the locker room. I think the transition is going to be a little bit easier than it was for me. I think I was freshly married, I wasn’t figuring out anything at that point,” Mace said. “He’s mature and understands it and I think the guys will respect his position as a coach.

“At the end of it, we’re having a guy who has chosen to make Regina his home, he has chosen to represent this team and he’s done it at a high level and he will continue to do that.”

With Johnson taking over the role of defensive line coach, former D-line coach Phillip Daniels isn’t expected to return in 2026. On his X bio, he has already updated it to say he is the Ottawa Redblacks defensive line coach, setting him up to join Ryan Dinwiddie’s staff there.

Mace said an announcement is expected later this week on what the rest of his staff will look like for next season.