Arizona Cardinals |
Height: 6-1 Weight:
224 Age: 26
Born: 12/16/1991 Memphis, TN
College: Northern Iowa
Experience: 4th season
High School: Clinton HS [IA]
The Perception:
The
perception for any player in the NFL has been and will forever be fit under the
statement of “what have you done for me lately”. Past success receives little acknowledgment
when a recent season ends in falter providing criticism onto the player that
may not be justified. This description is clearly the case when discussing the
Cardinals superstar running back David Johnson. The 2017 season became a
disaster due in part to a wrist injury which ultimately held Johnson out for
the entire campaign, forming the public opinion to instantly forget the great
success David achieved a season prior. While the forgetful nature of the casual
football fan can be forgiven, hearing some experts explain their reasons believing
a rebound will not transpire comes as quite a shock to us at ADF.
Normally an
injury sustained to the wrist (much like Johnson suffered) could be
rehabilitated in an eight to ten week time frame allowing the player to finish
the year with potentially seeing six to eight games. This didn’t happen as the
Cardinals feel out of playoff contention forcing the Arizona brain trust to cut
their losses placing Johnson on the shelf for the remainder of the season. Having
only played one contest and touching the ball a mere 12 times for 29 yards, is
the glaring issue providing the perception that Johnson isn’t one of the best running
backs in the NFL today, clear short memories.
Going back
to his breakout season in his short career (2016), David Johnson let the world
know he was robot-like racking up yardage at will becoming the go to option on
that Cardinals offense. The impressive resume for Johnson goes far beyond the
statistics when you see how the man is built physically. David possesses
fantastic height and weight for a lead back teamed with deceptive speed and
quickness, with a one cut move that could rival the best in the game. Adding to
that, Johnson has some of the best hands we’ve seen from a big man coming out
of the backfield while making defenders miss in the open field gaining massive
chunk yards in the process. Don’t fall asleep on David Johnson regaining his
throne in 2018.
The Reality:
In 2016
David Johnson was the talk of the league after starting his career on the bench
while being selected in the third round of the 2015 NFL draft. It was clear early
on that David would be a force playing in the Bruce Arians system which exploited
the talents of top end running back skill. When all was said and done (in 2016),
David Johnson amassed 293 carries for 1239 yards and 16 touchdowns on the
ground, very impressive. The accolades didn’t stop there as Johnson was able to
generate handsomely in the pass game that same season hauling in a whopping 80
receptions for 879 yards and 4 more touchdowns, unbelievably incredible.
While ADF is
fully onboard with endorsing Johnson for the 2018 season, a few question marks
do arise when reviewing this edition of the Cardinals. First, the new regime
taking over in the desert is assembled and ready to apply their systems and
schemes which takes time to form. That being said, offensively Arizona hired
one of the brightest minds to run the show in Mike McCoy which should give credence
to a sound run attack and play action pass. McCoy ended up being the scapegoat in
Denver where he was let go during the season as inept play forced the hand of the
Broncos coach Vance Joseph to part ways. The firing from the Broncos in no way
diminishes the genius in McCoy’s play calling ability and should again be
proven correct in his first season with the Cardinals. All signs point up for
Johnson from this perspective.
The other
aspect that could cause worry for the overall production of David Johnson is
the uneven career of their new pivot Sam Bradford. Don’t get us wrong, we
believe Bradford can still play at a high level, but his injury history is far
too long to ignore. With training camp just around the corner, new system
installations will be the focus for Bradford as David Johnson looks to help
ease the transition for this new offense. Finding ways to continue down the
positive trend, the offensive line which has been somewhat of a disaster in
recent years has been corrected with key free agent additions like former
Giants standout Justin Pugh. Teaming up with Center AQ Shipley and Guard Mike
Iupati, the Cardinals could effectively have one of the best interior lines in
the NFL, another giant uptick for David Johnson. Offensively the Cards do have
great potential to be head and shoulders ahead of last year’s unit.
The Outlook:
With the few
concerns listed, the overall outlook for the Cardinals and David Johnson look
quite plentiful for them to get back on track in 2018. David Johnson has again
been on record to suggest he is capable of achieving the unprecedented
1000/1000 yard club this season. With those unfamiliar, it’s Johnson’s belief
that he can garner 1000 rushing yards and 1000 receiving yards in the same
season, quite the difficult yet possible task for a player of his skillset. It’s
no question this offense should revolve around the run game leaving Johnson as
the main benefactor. It’s important to note the Cardinals do house a great supporting
cast to remove pressure from Johnson essentially opening up lanes for him to
gallop through. Future Hall of Famer Larry Fitzgerald still defies father time continuing
to play at an extremely high level. Adding rookie standout Christian Kirk to
the mix only compounds the issue for opposing defenses to single in on David
Johnson with stacked boxes. With a season of rest on his legs, David should
come into this campaign rejuvenated and ready to prove he is the best in the
business.
From the fantasy perspective, 2017 was a complete wash for
Johnson so we must go back further for evaluation purposes. In 2016 Johnson
posted an incredible 411.2
fantasy points giving him an average of 25.7
points per game PPR (Point Per Reception) formats, literally out of this world
numbers for a running back. David was the consensus first overall pick heading
into fantasy drafts last year, but we all know how that turned out. However, we
can’t seem to understand how Johnson currently holds an ADP (Average Draft
Position) of four with a worst selection showing his ADP fall to eight, when he
would’ve outscored Todd Gurley’s last season mark by 27.7 points when compared to Johnson’s 2016 numbers. We do
realize connecting these numbers comes with flaws as they are pulled from separate
seasons, but the overall point shouldn’t go overlooked. ADF fully recommends
David Johnson this year and we have no issue whatsoever using the first overall
selection to secure his services this season. Get ready to reap the rewards for
taking the leap on David Johnson.
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