His side was outplayed by Northern Districts at the University Oval on Saturday night, bringing a remarkable 11-game winning streak in the HRV Cup to an end.
The visitors reached 183 for six and some big hitting from Aaron Redmond at the death reduced the final margin to just nine runs, a deficit which was flattering for the Volts.
Johnson was clear about where he believed it went wrong.
''We just did not bowl well at all,'' he said.
''We were too straight, too wide, too short and too full. We were fruit salad in terms of our execution.
''We pulled it back a bit in the middle but they got away again. 180 was far too many, I thought.''
Johnson did not single anyone out but Jacob Duffy is struggling to rediscover his rhythm. The 19-year-old was the joint leading wicket-taker in the competition last summer but went for more than 10 runs an over.
James McMillan has been the most economical of Otago's bowlers of late but he also struggled to contain the batsmen, conceding 39 runs.
Jesse Ryder was the pick, taking one for 21 from three overs.
Otago was without seamer Ian Butler, who is sidelined with a serious back complaint. Spinner Nick Beard has a muscle strain and Jimmy Neesham and Nathan McCullum are on national duty.
It is a tribute to Otago's depth that it is still competitive with so many first-choice bowlers missing. But the Volts did not bowl as well as Northern into the stiff wind and Johnson felt his side lacked vigour.
''We just didn't have any energy into the win and just struggled along and really didn't take the game to them. It was a disappointing performance on the whole.''
