CJ is Titans' one, and only, Pro Bowler

Chris Johnson has run his way into a starting spot in this year's Pro Bowl. / Mike Strasinger for The City Paper

Running back Chris Johnson has been named the starting running back for the AFC in the 2010 Pro Bowl.

Selections were announced Tuesday evening for the game that will be played Jan. 31 in Miami this season.

Johnson, who leads the NFL with 1,872 yards rushing and needs just 128 yards to become the sixth player in league history to run for 2,000 yards, has been named to the Pro Bowl for the second consecutive season.

Last year, he was named to the all-star team, but was unable to participate because of an ankle injury suffered in the AFC Divisional Playoffs against Baltimore. Johnson and Earl Campbell are the only two running backs in franchise history to earn Pro Bowl status in their first two NFL seasons.

Johnson is the only Titans player to be selected to this year’s team, although others may be alternates on the team. Last year, Tennessee had seven players chosen for the game.

Johnson has a chance to break several team and league records in Sunday’s regular-season finale at Seattle. He needs 63 yards rushing to supplant Campbell for the best single rushing season in team history, and is just 75 yards shy of Marshall Faulk’s record of 2,429 yards from scrimmage, which combines rushing and receiving yards.

Additionally, Johnson is within striking distance of Eric Dickerson’s single-season NFL rushing record. He would need 234 yards against the Seahawks to surpass Dickerson’s record of 2,105 yards rushing set in 1984.