Dome Patrol & The First Winners- Franchise Legend
- Saints Hall of Fame
Vaughan Johnson
- Position
- LBLinebacker
- Number
- #53
- Saints years
- 1986–1993
- NFL career
- 1986–1994
- Era
- Dome Patrol & The First Winners
- Franchise
- New Orleans Saints
Honors
- New Orleans Saints Hall of Fame
- 4x Pro Bowl
Also played for Philadelphia Eagles (1994–1994).
Why he’s a legend
The legacy
Vaughan Johnson came from the USFL with Sam Mills and started eight seasons at inside linebacker in New Orleans, going to four consecutive Pro Bowls from 1989 through 1992. He was the least publicised of the Dome Patrol and, by the assessment of the coaches who selected the Pro Bowl rosters, no less good than the rest of it.
Why he matters
- Four consecutive Pro Bowl selections, 1989 through 1992.
- One of the four linebackers named to the same Pro Bowl after the 1992 season — the only time it has happened.
- A starter on the 1987 team that gave the franchise its first winning season, and the 1991 team that won its first division title.
- Like Sam Mills, he reached the NFL through the USFL rather than the draft, and outlasted almost everyone who came the conventional way.
Defining moment
Four for four
1992 season
The 1992 Pro Bowl rosters included every starting linebacker the Saints had. Johnson had by then made it four years running, on a defense that finished in the league’s top five in points allowed in three of them.
Career statistics
Current through the 1994 season
With the Saints
- Seasons
- 8
- Pro Bowls
- 4
Honors & accolades
Championships & enshrinement
- New Orleans Saints Hall of Fame
Selections & records
- 4x Pro Bowl1989–1992
Career timeline
9 seasons in the NFL, 8 of them in New Orleans.
- 1986New Orleans SaintsJoins the Saints after two USFL seasons
- 1987New Orleans SaintsStarts for the first winning team in franchise history
- 1988New Orleans Saints
- 1989New Orleans SaintsFirst of four consecutive Pro Bowl selections
- 1990New Orleans Saints
- 1991New Orleans Saints
- 1992New Orleans SaintsAll four Dome Patrol linebackers named to the Pro Bowl
- 1993New Orleans Saints
- 1994Philadelphia EaglesFinal NFL season, with Philadelphia
Era context
What the league looked like while Vaughan Johnson played it. Raw totals across eras are not like-for-like.
Dome Patrol & The First Winners
1981–1996
The franchise finally wins — and builds the best linebacking corps the NFL had seen.
- Sacks became an official NFL statistic in 1982, so career sack totals begin there.
- The 1982 season was shortened to nine games by a players strike; 1987 was shortened to fifteen, three of them played by replacement players.
- The salary cap arrived in 1994 and changed how long a roster could stay together.
- The Saints reached the playoffs four times in this era and did not win a postseason game.
Data & sources
Statistics on this profile are current through the 1994 season.
- Tackle totals from this era were compiled by clubs rather than the league and are not comparable between teams; none are shown.
