Titans DB Nazeeh Johnson Suspended Six Games, Says Positive Test Came From Fertility Drug

The NFL suspended Tennessee Titans defensive back Nazeeh Johnson six games on Friday, August 14, for violating the league's performance-enhancing substance policy, according to the NFL's daily transaction wire and reporting from ESPN's Adam Schefter via Yahoo Sports.

Johnson won't dispute it. But he says the story behind the positive test has nothing to do with cheating on the field.

In a statement posted on X, Johnson said he and his wife were trying to conceive and discovered he was infertile. He took a fertility medication to help with that. He says he didn't realize the drug contained a banned substance.

"Lesson to all NFL players and new players coming into the league: do not put anything in your body without following the process and getting approval beforehand," Johnson wrote, according to the New York Post.

He also shared that the couple recently lost a pregnancy. "We lost our baby a few weeks ago, and this has been an incredibly difficult time for my wife and me," Johnson wrote. "Fortunately, we have nine good eggs left, so we're holding on to hope that we'll be able to grow our family."

According to a report from The Winchester Star, cited by Fantasy Nerds, Johnson specifically took Clomid, a fertility drug. The NFL's policy does include a Therapeutic Use Exemption process for infertility treatment. Johnson's required paperwork status before taking the drug remains unclear. If he had an approved exemption, he likely wouldn't have tested positive in the first place.

Johnson isn't claiming the test was wrong. He's claiming ignorance of the approval process, not innocence of the substance itself. Those are different things under the NFL's PED policy, and the six-game suspension reflects that the league didn't buy an excuse it apparently considers avoidable.

Timeline of the case

Fantasy Nerds reports Johnson was informed of his positive test in February. He appealed the ruling on July 22. He signed with the Titans just five days later, on July 27. The suspension was announced after his appeal was heard, per that same report.

That timeline matters. The Titans brought Johnson in after he already knew he'd tested positive and had an appeal pending. Tennessee's front office took on that risk with eyes open.

What it means for the Titans

Johnson will begin his suspension when Tennessee opens the regular season September 13 at home against the New York Jets, according to The Sports Capitol, 740 The FAN, and KTOP-AM, all citing the same underlying report. He's eligible to return October 25 against the Cleveland Browns.

He can still practice with the team and play in all preseason games. In the Titans' preseason opener against the San Francisco 49ers, Johnson tied for the team lead with five tackles, playing 37 of his 38 defensive snaps at outside cornerback, according to Pro Football Focus data cited by Fantasy Nerds.

The suspension lands at a rough time for Tennessee's secondary. The Titans finished the 2025 season ranked 23rd in pass defense, allowing 230.5 yards per game, according to Yahoo Sports. Under head coach Brian Callahan, the team brought in nine new defensive backs this offseason, including new starters Alontae Taylor and Cor'Dale Flott. Johnson was ticketed for a depth role behind them.

Johnson's career context

Johnson, 28, was a seventh-round pick by the Kansas City Chiefs in 2022. He spent four seasons there, appearing in 29 regular season and playoff games with six starts, recording 66 tackles and three passes defended, according to multiple reports including Field Level Media.

He won a Super Bowl ring as a rookie in 2022 but missed the entire 2023 season, including Kansas City's repeat title run, due to a torn ACL. His most productive year came in 2024, when he started six of 16 games and posted 56 tackles, three passes defended, and one sack. A shoulder injury limited him to just two games in 2025 before he hit free agency and signed with Tennessee.

Johnson's statement puts the onus on his own vetting process, not on the league's testing. Whether the Titans knew the full details of his pending appeal before signing him in July hasn't been addressed publicly by either Johnson or the team. Nashville won't see him play a regular-season down until Week 7, and what role, if any, awaits him behind Taylor and Flott remains an open question for Callahan's coaching staff.