Joshua Johnson (born May 15, 1986) is an American football quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the fifth round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He played college football at San Diego where he was coached by current 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh.
Johnson attended Oakland Technical High School and was a letterman in football, basketball, and track & field. In football, as a senior, he was named the team's Most Improved Player, was a first team All-City selection, and led his team to the Oakland Athletic League Championship.
Johnson is the cousin of running back Marshawn Lynch. They both attended Oakland Technical High School.Johnson was a backup for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for 4 years.
Josh Johnson enrolled at University of San Diego in 2004, where he played backup quarterback to Todd Mortensen. He finished with 135 yards on the season.
Johnson earned the starting job after Mortensen's departure for the 2005 season. That season, he earned some All-America honors after breaking numerous records. Johnson, who earned three conference player of the week honors, totaled eight games with four or more passing touchdowns. His best game of the season came against Valparaiso, when he threw for a school-record seven touchdowns (all coming in the first half). He also had five touchdowns and 375 yards against Morehead State in the Pioneer Football League Championship victory. Johnson finished the season with 3,256 yards and 36 touchdowns, completing 70.1% of his passes en route to being named team MVP.