{"id":14484,"date":"2025-05-01T06:12:17","date_gmt":"2025-05-01T06:12:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/14484\/"},"modified":"2025-05-01T06:12:17","modified_gmt":"2025-05-01T06:12:17","slug":"how-unlikely-was-will-johnsons-2nd-round-fall-to-cardinals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/14484\/","title":{"rendered":"How unlikely was Will Johnson’s 2nd-round fall to Cardinals?"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n

Lloyd Christmas would be proud.<\/a><\/p>\n

The Arizona Cardinals\u2019 chances of nabbing Michigan cornerback Will Johnson in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft weren\u2019t great.<\/p>\n

Nearly zero to be exact, according to head coach Jonathan Gannon.<\/p>\n

“When we picked him, literally 8 defensive coordinators texted me.” @AZCardinals<\/a> HC Jonathan Gannon tells @AdamSchein<\/a> how fired up he was to land star #Michigan<\/a> corner Will Johnson in round 2 of the NFL Draft.<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udd17 https:\/\/t.co\/jP0HFpEWEm<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/3TSZYqQkqN<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Mad Dog Sports Radio (@MadDogRadio) April 30, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we left on Thursday, we had him graded very high,\u201d Gannon told SiriusXM\u2019s Mad Dog Radio on Wednesday. \u201cIn my mind, I was like, \u2018There is no chance he\u2019s there when we pick in (Round 2), like none.\u2019 And we get there Friday and (general manager Monti Ossenfort) has all these algorithms that he has all the analytics people run and all this stuff. I said, \u2018What are the chances that he\u2019s there in 2?\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re like, \u2018Coach, like 0.02%.\u2019 Like no chance. So, when he was sitting there, I\u2019m like, \u2018Dude, am I missing something? Like, this is the best corner in the draft!’\u201d<\/p>\n

So, you\u2019re telling me there was a chance!<\/p>\n

Sure enough, the stars aligned with Johnson linking up with Gannon and the Cardinals at No. 47 overall.<\/p>\n

Gannon wasn\u2019t the only one shocked by his availability on Day 2, either.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know what\u2019s funny? I\u2019m going to air dirty laundry here, but as the draft\u2019s going on, coaches are texting back and forth \u2014 not just our staff, but other staffs, people that you worked with or that you know and you make a pick and certain coaches like certain guys,\u201d Gannon said. \u201cWhen we picked him, literally like eight defensive coordinators texted me like, \u2018Oh my God, No. 1 corner on the board, blah, blah, blah, blah.\u2019 And for whatever reason he came to us.\u201d <\/p>\n

The reason behind Will Johnson\u2019s second-round skid<\/p>\n

Johnson\u2019s fall down the draft board from projected first-rounder to Day 2 pick centers largely around his injury history.<\/p>\n

The cornerback dealt with shoulder and turf toe issues last season that limited him to just six games played.<\/p>\n

During the draft process, he was held out of participating at the NFL Scouting Combine due to a hamstring injury. NFL Network\u2019s Ian Rapoport also mentioned a knee issue. <\/p>\n

Johnson, however, has since reiterated that he\u2019s healthy and hasn\u2019t dealt with any knee issues in two years.<\/p>\n

Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort doubled down on Johnson\u2019s health status, saying the team felt good with its evaluation of the cornerback. <\/p>\n

Aside from the injury concerns, there\u2019s not a lot to knock about Johnson\u2019s game.<\/p>\n

Johnson was a pick six waiting to happen at Michigan, taking three of his nine career picks to the house. Two of those came during his injury-riddled final season at Michigan.<\/p>\n

He added 10 passes defensed and 68 tackles across 32 career games.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a reason why ESPN\u2019s Field Yates told Arizona Sports\u2019 Bickley & Marotta on Wednesday that Johnson was \u201ca home run\u201d<\/a> addition based on his draft spot.<\/p>\n

Follow @Tdrake4sports<\/a><\/p>\n

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