One of the few players ever to rush for over 2,000 yards in a season has found a new home for the 2015 NFL season. Chris Johnson has agreed to terms with the Arizona Cardinals, according to Jay Glazer. It will be a one-year deal, according to Glazer. Ed Werder of ESPN reports that the deal could be worth up to $2 million with incentives.
Chris Johnson agrees to 1-year deal with Cardinals
Chris Johnson will join the Arizona Cardinals, completing a comeback from a bad offseason incident that left him seriously injured.
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Johnson, 29, took a physical with the club Sunday. He had been sitting on the free agent market since the end of his 2014 season with the New York Jets. He should serve as veteran insurance to a young stable of running backs that includes Andre Ellington (2013 NFL Draft class), Stepfan Taylor (2013) and David Johnson (2015).
Johnson began his career with the Tennessee Titans in 2008, quickly establishing himself as one of the most explosive tailbacks in the league. During his second season, he joined the 2,000-yard club with an impressive 5.6 yards per carry average and 16 total touchdowns. Johnson never approached those levels of production again, but still managed over 1,000 yards on the ground during each of his six seasons in Tennessee.
He’ll turn 30 in September, but he should have plenty to offer a Cardinals team that only managed to average 3.29 yards per carry last season, the lowest in the NFL. Arizona is hurting at the position as both Johnson and Marion Grice are dealing with hamstring injuries, while Ellington only recently returned to practice from his own injuries.
Last week, head coach Bruce Arians said he has been disappointed in his running back corps.
“I am not pleased with the time (Andre) and David have lost, and I was not fired up about the running backs’ performance on Saturday,” Arians said.
Arians added that the team would be looking elsewhere for help. It landed on Johnson, who is coming off a good season in a limited role with the Jets. He appeared in 16 regular season games last season but started just six, finishing with 663 yards and one touchdown on 155 carries. His 4.3 yards per carry average was his best since his 2012 season in Tennessee.
On March 8, 2015, Johnson sustained injuries during a drive-by in his home state of Florida that claimed the life of another. Johnson was taken to the hospital where he recovered.
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