Arizona Cardinals among NFL day 2 winners thanks to Will Johnson pick

[ASFN Admin]

A knee injury kept Michigan football star cornerback Will Johnson from being a first-round draft pick, let alone a top 10 pick as originally envisioned. But eventually, he came off the board in the middle of the second round, with the Arizona Cardinals rising up and taking him.

And the Cardinals are getting some accolades as a result.

Johnson is still a top talent, regardless of his injury, and it's enough for any team to want to take him. But with the Cardinals taking a chance given his recently disclosed health status, they're the ones being honored by NFL.com as one of day 2 of the NFL draft's winners.

Jonathan Gannon, head coach, Arizona Cardinals: Gannon is quietly building this team into a real contender, and this draft will go a long way toward helping that cause. In the first round, Arizona grabbed defensive tackle Walter Nolen, who can be a disruptive pass rusher in the interior of the defensive line. The bargain came in the second round, when Michigan cornerback Will Johnson was still on the board to be taken with the 47th overall pick. Concerns about a knee issue might have caused Johnson to slide out of the first round, but he brings real value to Gannon's defense. Johnson made a ton of plays in college and has the instincts and ball skills to make an impact as a rookie. Throw in the selection of edge rusher Jordan Burch in the third round, and you can see what the Cardinals wanted to accomplish in this draft. This team looks a lot better on defense today.

Johnson leads Michigan football in all-time pick-sixes with three, which is more than the amount of touchdowns he surrendered in his three-year career with the Wolverines (two).

If he holds up and is able to look like he did in Ann Arbor, Arizona will certainly look back on this draft -- as will the rest of the league -- and wonder why he wasn't chosen sooner.

This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: Arizona Cardinals' Will Johnson pick makes it a day 2 NFL draft winner

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