David Johnson is the 2nd highest paid RB in the NFL?

[LoyaltyisaCurse]

In a catastrophic season he racked up 1400 total yards and 10tds

I was just about to post this exact thought...I do worry his injury vs Rams two seasons ago robbed him of his top gear, but I still believe he is capable of huge performances.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

My Eye test does agree with it.

The 5 times he got room - literally there was only like 5 times all season he looked exactly the same. How the coaches were so damn incompetent they couldn't figure out out to pass it to him other than on a screen (that 90 percent of the time the defense could easily read) but maybe once all season is reason enough they should have all been fired.

Either you are remembering him better than he actually was, or you are unfairly blaming him for constantly running into a brick wall of tacklers.

Nope. There was even a specific play Sunday where I was think “boy does he look slow and he was brought down easily . . . in 2015 he would’ve been further downfield and stiff-armed thatvyackler to the ground” and before I could open my mouth cheese said, “man DJ looks slow.” So I don’t know what you’re watching, but it ain’t vintage DJ through your rose-colored glasses.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

In a catastrophic season he racked up 1400 total yards and 10tds

18th in the league on a per game basis. Not bad for a terrible year. But he left a lot of yards on the field that 2015 DJ would’ve had.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

I was just about to post this exact thought...I do worry his injury vs Rams two seasons ago robbed him of his top gear, but I still believe he is capable of huge performances.

I think this is it. Doesn’t have the top gear any longer. But that may have been a gear few RBs possess. Anyone here still think he could return a kickoff 100 yards? I don’t.

 

[Broseph]

2019 will be pivotal for DJ, we will find out if his lack of production was on him or on the line/coaching issues.

 

[AZfaninMN]

Why does Rosen get a “pass” behind our pitiful offensive line and horrible coaching staff when judging his 2019, but DJ doesn’t? They played behind the same line and same coaches? At least with DJ we’ve seen production.

 

[Brak]

So, far I am not impressed with Johnson, and personally I think his 2015 season was a fluke.

Jim Brown in his prime would have been lucky to gain 600 yards behind that bruised bush league OL this year. Throw this year out. Meaningless.

If they revamp the OL in the offseason (which would be a minor miracle) and he has the same kind of season next year - then I'll concede that perhaps you were right. Too early to judge IMHO.

As for the "he's got his money" comment - nothing DJ has said or done in his time here (or before) leads me to believe that he's one of those guys who just quits when he gets paid. Everything about him says the opposite. Let's give him another year before dismissing him as a 1-year wonder.

 

[LoyaltyisaCurse]

Why does Rosen get a “pass” behind our pitiful offensive line and horrible coaching staff when judging his 2019, but DJ doesn’t? They played behind the same line and same coaches? At least with DJ we’ve seen production.

Yep--despite all that--DJ managed to finish in the top half of the league in total yards and TDs for RBs...

 

[kerouac9]

Yeah. He is easily still a top 5 back.

He is the same player he was two years ago. We just had incredibly incompetent coaches, and the worst oline in history that did not allow him to display it.

Top 5? Maybe, but not EASILY. He might not be one of the top 2 backs in his division. When the O-line was healthy, David Johnson looked like complete garbage.

Gurley, Barkley, Kamara, Gordon, McCaffery, Elliot. Which two guys are you kicking out to make room for DJ?

Why does Rosen get a “pass” behind our pitiful offensive line and horrible coaching staff when judging his 2019, but DJ doesn’t? They played behind the same line and same coaches? At least with DJ we’ve seen production.

Because Josh Rosen was a rookie playing the most difficult position in sports and David Johnson had just signed a contract making him the second-highest paid player at his position.

Yep--despite all that--DJ managed to finish in the top half of the league in total yards and TDs for RBs...

David Johnson finished 42nd in the NFL in rushing DYAR, 40th in DVOA, and 43rd in success rate. He had the third-most runs in the NFL.

Johsnon was even less efficient as a receiver. 50th in receiving DYAR and 43ed in DVOA. He had the 11th-most targets among RBs and the forth-lowest catch rate (66%).

I don't think that DJ is THIS bad, and I expect significant regression upward next season; he's going to be THE value pick in fantasy next year. But this doesn't change the fact that it was ludicrous to extend him at the beginning of this season without knowing how much of his success was dependent on context.

 

[Broseph]

Top 5? Maybe, but not EASILY. He might not be one of the top 2 backs in his division. When the O-line was healthy, David Johnson looked like complete garbage.

Gurley, Barkley, Kamara, Gordon, McCaffery, Elliot. Which two guys are you kicking out to make room for DJ?



Because Josh Rosen was a rookie playing the most difficult position in sports and David Johnson had just signed a contract making him the second-highest paid player at his position.



David Johnson finished 42nd in the NFL in rushing DYAR, 40th in DVOA, and 43rd in success rate. He had the third-most runs in the NFL.

Johsnon was even less efficient as a receiver. 50th in receiving DYAR and 43ed in DVOA. He had the 11th-most targets among RBs and the forth-lowest catch rate (66%).

I don't think that DJ is THIS bad, and I expect significant regression upward next season; he's going to be THE value pick in fantasy next year. But this doesn't change the fact that it was ludicrous to extend him at the beginning of this season without knowing how much of his success was dependent on context.

Yup, I hated that move to extend him.

 

[RugbyMuffin]

Why does Rosen get a “pass” behind our pitiful offensive line and horrible coaching staff when judging his 2019, but DJ doesn’t? They played behind the same line and same coaches? At least with DJ we’ve seen production.

Where Rosen gets a pass is that he is a rookie.

Where Rosen doesn't get a pass is that he didn't look to improve, and actually looked like he regressed.


David Johnson is a 4 year veteran whom got a second contract to be the main weapon for the Arizona Cardinals offense. He looks to have lost his edge since his wrist injury.

 

[GuernseyCard]

GURLEY - 2016 (16 games)

278 / 885 (3.2)
43 / 327 (7.6)
6 TDS

JOHNSON - 2018 (16 games)

258 / 940 (3.6)
50 / 446 (8.9)
10 TDS

 

[slanidrac16]

DJ will be all that and more if we get a real offensive minded head coach. He was totally wasted the entire first half of the season. I’ll choose to focus on other problems this team is facing.

 

[AZfaninMN]

Where Rosen gets a pass is that he is a rookie.

Where Rosen doesn't get a pass is that he didn't look to improve, and actually looked like he regressed.


David Johnson is a 4 year veteran whom got a second contract to be the main weapon for the Arizona Cardinals offense. He looks to have lost his edge since his wrist injury.

DJ has 35.9% of our total yards and accounted for 10 of our 24 TDs. What else can the guy do? He wasn’t used as a WR consistently or ran on the perimeter more than 3 times a game. What else is the guy supposed to do?