Jamon Dumas-Johnson is one of those players who makes you scratch your head when looking at the 2025 draft cycle. One minute he’s a First-Team All-American leading a historically dominant Georgia defense to a national title, and the next, he’s an undrafted free agent fighting for reps on a practice squad. It’s a wild trajectory. You’ve got a guy who was literally the heartbeat of the "Silver Britches" in Athens, yet he somehow slipped through every single round of the draft last year.
How does a Butkus Award finalist go from being a projected Day 2 lock to signing a UDFA contract with the Green Bay Packers? It’s complicated. If you're looking into the Jamon Dumas-Johnson NFL draft story, you have to look at the tape from two different schools and a medical report that might have been the ultimate dealbreaker.
The Georgia Peak and the Kentucky Gamble
Basically, Dumas-Johnson—known as "Pop" to everyone in the building—was the man in 2022. He started all 15 games for Georgia. He put up 70 tackles, 9 tackles for loss, and 4 sacks. Scouts loved his "downhill" style. He wasn't just a tackler; he was a tone-setter. Honestly, he looked like the next in a long line of UGA linebackers like Roquan Smith or Nakobe Dean.
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But then 2023 happened.
A fractured forearm against Missouri ended his season early. That was the first red flag. Instead of going pro then, he hit the transfer portal. He landed at Kentucky for the 2024 season, a move that shocked a lot of people in the SEC. He wanted to prove he was still a three-down linebacker. He did lead the Wildcats with 67 tackles and 3.5 sacks, but the "pop" in his game looked a little different.
The Scouting Divide
- The "Old Man" Instincts: His high school coach, Henry Russell, always raved about his natural feel for the game. He's got that "alpha" linebacker DNA where he just finds the ball.
- The Speed Question: This is where the Jamon Dumas-Johnson NFL draft stock took a hit. While he posted a surprising 4.50-second 40-yard dash at his Pro Day, his game tape sometimes told a different story.
- Size vs. Range: He’s 6'1" and weighs around 240 pounds. In today's NFL, teams are obsessed with "sideline-to-sideline" speed. Pop is more of a "between the tackles" hammer.
What Really Happened in the 2025 Draft?
It’s easy to blame the injury, but the reality is more nuanced. Scouts started worrying about his consistency. During his time at Kentucky, some evaluators used words like "listless" to describe certain games. That’s a harsh word for a guy with two national championship rings.
Then came the Combine. He was there, but the medical team actually shut him down. They found something "minor," according to Jamon, but in the NFL, "minor" is enough to make 32 teams pass on you for seven straight rounds. He eventually blew the doors off his Pro Day with a 37.5-inch vertical and a 10.5-foot broad jump, but by then, the narrative was set.
He wasn't just a linebacker; he was a "projection."
Life With the Green Bay Packers
After going undrafted in 2025, he signed with Green Bay. It makes sense if you think about it. The Packers have a history of finding value in the scrap heap, and their defensive scheme needs guys who aren't afraid to stick their nose in the fan.
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He spent most of 2025 on the practice squad. It's a grind. He finally got elevated to the active roster late in the season, even recording 10 tackles in a January 2026 game against the Vikings. That one game alone showed that the talent didn't just evaporate. It’s still there. He’s currently 24 years old, which is "old" for a rookie but "prime" for a guy who knows how to lead a huddle.
Making the Roster in 2026
For Pop to stick long-term, he has to become a special teams demon. That’s how he started at St. Frances Academy in Baltimore, and that’s how he’ll stay in the league. He needs to prove he can cover kicks as well as he can read a Power-O run play.
The Reality of the Jamon Dumas-Johnson NFL Draft Profile
If you’re tracking his career now, you have to realize he’s no longer the "All-American from Georgia." He’s a blue-collar worker trying to bridge the gap between his collegiate accolades and the pro reality.
Watch the "Futures" Contract: Green Bay recently signed him to a reserve/future contract in January 2026. This means they see enough to keep him around for the 2026 offseason program.
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The Special Teams Path: Keep an eye on his snap counts on the kick coverage units. If he’s not playing there, he’s not staying on the 53-man roster.
Health is Wealth: That forearm injury and whatever the Combine doctors found are in the past, but he has to stay "clean" on the injury report to ever get a starting look again.
The Jamon Dumas-Johnson NFL draft journey is a reminder that the transition to the pros isn't a straight line. Sometimes, you have to go back to being a special teams kid to remind everyone why you were an All-American in the first place. Check the Packers' preseason depth charts this August; that will be the real moment of truth for Pop.