During the 2025 season, Zion Johnson watched as the Browns face the Vikings in Week 5, in which RB Quinshon Judkins found a running lane and took off down the field. While the play was called back for a penalty, Johnson was still impressed by Judkins' ability to run.

"I saw this young running back that was just electric, and I thought, 'Man, if I had the opportunity to block for somebody like that, the sky's the limit,'" Johnson said. "Tons of offensive linemen around the league, when you see a running back that can make things appear almost out of nothing, it's very impressive to watch."

Now, Johnson will have the chance to block for Judkins and the Browns after signing with Cleveland in free agency.

"Looking from the outside in, this team has a lot of good pieces and a lot of talented players," Johnson said. "And having the opportunity to come here and just seeing the pieces that we have, and the other veterans that have come in on the offensive line as well, I just feel really good about our room. I think that we have the potential to be something very special."

He started at right guard during his rookie season with the Chargers in 2022 but then shifted to left guard in his second season. He then spent a large portion of the last three seasons at left guard. In Cleveland, Johnson said he is prepared to play either left or right guard, knowing that he has trained his movements in both directions to be able to switch in between both positions. He has worked through the need to switch his perspective on the field when flipping positions.

In his first four seasons in Los Angeles, Johnson also started 65 of 66 career games. He missed just two games over his time with the Chargers, demonstrating his durability and dependability at the position.

"I take a lot of pride in it because you can't help the team from off the field," Johnson said. "But I think the way that I add to the team, the way that I fill my role and do my job is being out there consistently, doing my job and giving everything that I can, whether that's my body or whatever to the team. I take a lot of pride in that."

As Johnson enters this next chapter of his career, he is surrounded by a number of new faces – not only teammates but also the coaching staff.

The Browns have a new offensive line coach in George Warhop, who brings 30 years of NFL coaching experience to his role. Johnson said Warhop's role on the Browns' coaching staff was one of the major draws to Cleveland.

"I think he's one of those offensive line coaches that just draws guys in just with his level of coaching," Johnson said. "He is one of the elite offensive line coaches and I think that's pretty well known. To have the opportunity to come in and have him coach me, to learn things from him, but also to bounce off of him as well, is going to be great for me and great for our room as a whole."

The Browns used the opening days of free agency to address the needs on the offensive line, not only signing Johnson but also signing C/G Elgton Jenkins, re-signing G Teven Jenkins and acquiring T Tytus Howard in a trade with the Texans. Johnson noted that the Browns were focused on improving the offensive line this offseason, as well as the team as a whole.

As a unit, Johnson knows they must build a level of continuity among one another. He believes they can do so through their work on the field, in the weight room and in the meeting rooms in order to learn how they set and how they fit different double teams. Johnson said he briefly spoke with Jenkins and believes that they all hold a similar mentality in wanting to create synergy as an offensive line.

"Both of those guys I've watched a lot on crossover, as offensive linemen we love to watch our peers, see things that they do well, see things that we can steal for our own game," Johnson said. "Both of those guys are really, really good players. Tytus when he was with Houston and Elgton when he was with Green Bay, those guys are just consistent. And I'm really excited to play next to them and really grow with them and see what we can become as a unit because I think we all have unique strengths that we can add to this offensive line unit, and things that we can enhance in each other as well."