Cardinals Offer RB Chris Johnson a Contract
Dec 7, 2014; Minneapolis, MN, USA; New York Jets running back
Chris Johnson(21) rushes against the Minnesota Vikings in the second quarter at TCF Bank Stadium. The Vikings win 30-24. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports
Arizona Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians has begun to voice his concerns with his backfield and the front office has begun to take fliers on outside help to address these concerns.
According to Dianna Marie Russini, ESPN, the Cardinals have reached out to Chris Johnson with a one-year contract offer.
The Cardinals are pursuing RB Chris Johnson. They have offered him a 1 year deal per sources. Stay tuned to see if he says yes. #Cardinals
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) August 11, 2015
Johnson, who ran for 2,006 yards in 2009 with the Tennessee Titans, has six 1,000+ yard seasons. His lone season under the 1,000-yard mark was last year however when he ran for 663 yards on just 155 carries with the New York Jets.
With hamstring woes to Andre Ellington, David Johnson, and Marion Grice the backfield is in dire need of assistance as the Cardinals roll into their first preseason game on Saturday against the Kansas City Chiefs.
In an interview with Arizona Sports 98.7 Bruce Arian said…
"“I am not pleased we are missing so much time with the top two guys and we may be looking to bring somebody in.”"
To me, CJ2k would be a great fit for the Cardinals if they can sign him for a cheap one-year deal. If Johnson, 29, doesn’t completely pan out as an every-down back then the worst case scenario would be that he adds depth to a depleted position on the team.
At this time it seems like Johnson’s lone hold up is that he wants to make the 53-man regular season roster for a team.
I'm told Johnson's hesitation is making sure he goes into a situation that will allow him to make the team #Cardinals
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) August 11, 2015
I don’t understand why he wouldn’t make the roster with the Cardinals, especially if he can prove that he still has the wheels that he’s shown off for the past seven years in the league.
Stay tuned with us here at Heat Waved as we continue our coverage of the Chris Johnson story.