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Rams safety John Johnson came up with one of the biggest plays in the 2019 NFC Championship Game when he picked off Drew Brees in overtime. He then celebrated that ginormous play by mocking the Saints’ “Choppa Style” celebration.
John Johnson with the CHOPPA STYLE #NFLPlayoffs #Rams #LARvsNO pic.twitter.com/3IiCSIgBRZ
— The High Step (@TheHighStep) January 20, 2019
As it turns out, Johnson said he was inspired to troll New Orleans because of how the Saints previously mocked the Eagles.
Rams safety John Johnson III said a big reason he decided to do Choppa Style trolling is he didn't like the way the @Saints seemed to mock @Eagles' dog masks. He has friends on the Eagles.
— Sam Farmer (@LATimesfarmer) January 22, 2019
"I wanted to do that dance going into the locker room on a pick-6 or something," he said.
To be clear, the Saints didn’t mock the Eagles’ dog masks as much as they mocked the ski mask gimmick. It’s very clear the Saints do not like the Eagles, as I wrote about last week:
For whatever reason, the Saints clearly have some issues with the Eagles. After New Orleans won their 2014 playoff game in Philadelphia, Payton had the Saints’ team bus do victory laps around Lincoln Financial Field. During the 2018 offseason, Alvin Kamara said the Saints would have “beat the shit out of” the Eagles had they not lost to the Vikings. During the 2018 regular season, Kamara and Mark Ingram mocked the Eagles’ ski mask gimmick and referred to the Eagles as “fraudulents.” After the Eagles lost in New Orleans on Sunday, Saints players mocked the ski mask gimmick once again and also celebrated with “Dreams and Nightmares” (the Eagles’ Super Bowl anthem) blasting from speakers in the locker room.
Johnson didn’t specify who he’s friendly with on the Eagles but Daniel Gallen noted he’s from the same county as some of Philadelphia’s defensive backs:
John Johnson III is from P.G. County, Md., where #Eagles DBs Rodney McLeod, Ronald Darby & Tre Sullivan are also from. https://t.co/XAdHlHjAdv
— Daniel Gallen (@danieljtgallen) January 22, 2019
If you needed more reason to root against the Patriots in the Super Bowl, here you go. Very nice of Johnson to do the Eagles a solid.