Johnson’s body was found Wednesday at a homeless encampment, according to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.
Official records listed the cause of death as blunt head trauma combined with stab wounds.
His death was being investigated as a homicide. Fox News Digital reached out to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department for further comment.
"Unfortunately, it appears he was homeless," Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Lt. Steve De Jong told Newsweek. "It looks like he was probably living there."
Johnson’s friends and family mourned him on social media.
He was a standout at Texas Southern before he was selected in the fourth round by the New England Patriots in 1993. He never played a down with the Patriots and didn’t appear in an NFL game until 1995, when he was with the Eagles.
He played 23 games for the Eagles over two seasons. He recorded 43 tackles and seven sacks and returned one fumble for a touchdown.
Johnson joined the Raiders in 1997 and had 11 tackles in 15 games.
The defensive tackle took a chance at Arena Football when his time in the NFL was over. He played on both sides of the ball for the Orlando Predators and helped them to an ArenaBowl championship in 1998. He later played for the Los Angeles Avengers.
