After a 2017 wrist injury and a momentary training camp holdout, David Johnson’s season and the Arizona Cardinals both were supposed to look a whole lot better than what we saw on Sunday.
Nine carries. Thirty-seven yards. And a 15-point loss. That’s what Arizona Cardinals fans have waited since Week 1 of 2017 to see.
The disappointment is understandable, having waited all that time for David Johnson to recover from the wrist injury that stole his 2017 and to see how this new-look Arizona squad would look on the field. A beatdown from a middling NFC team in the Washington Redskins at home is not the way anyone in the NFL wants to start their season.
But fresh off signing a new three-year contract with $30 million guaranteed, Johnson got what he wanted to start 2018. Considering the Cardinals’ myriad adjustments heading into the season, losing to Washington is not wholly unexpected, despite Johnson’s shiny new deal and the positivity coming from new coach Steve Wilks and the rest of the staff.
Starting center A.Q. Shipley suffered a season-ending injury in camp, while Arizona is still searching for a legitimate No. 2 receiver opposite the legend, Larry Fitzgerald. That means Johnson is actually one of the only real veterans of this offense, with quarterback Sam Bradford in his first season in Phoenix as well. It was probably always going to take a few weeks to get in rhythm.
If there are any positive signs to take from the Week 1 blowout, it’s the run game. Johnson had a few solid runs at key points in the game, including a big 11-yard first down and a two-yard touchdown that accounted for Arizona’s only score. Couple Johnson’s solid day with rookie Chase Edmonds’ performance, and we could see an even larger reliance on the run game for the Cardinals in Week 1.
The Cardinals were down 21 at halftime and had to mostly abandon the run game. Staying even with the Rams in Week 2 would allow Johnson and Edmonds to make plays more consistently.
As Arizona adjusts to its new roster and coaching staff, it needs to lean even more heavily on its lodestar, Johnson.