in johnson's first regular season game since his injury, he rushed for 74 yards on 22 carries with an average of 3.4 yards per carry against the new england patriots on september 7, 2008. the chiefs lost the game 17–10. after a loss to the oakland raiders the following week, johnson spoke out about his low number of carries. in his next two games, johnson rushed for a combined 319 yards on 52 attempts with an average of 6.1 yards per carry. johnson was suspended for the chiefs' game against the tennessee titans on october 18 for violating team rules. johnson also was benched for the following game against the new york jets. johnson, after weeks of being inactive for the chiefs, was suspended by league commissioner roger goodell for the team's week 10 game against the san diego chargers. he finished the season with 874 yards and five touchdowns.