The 2018 Cardinals offense was abysmal under offensive Mike McCoy, so abysmal that they had to axe him mid-season and roll with Byron Leftwich as their play-caller. The blend of horrific play-calling, a rookie quarterback thrown into the fire too soon and a shitty offensive line led to a tumultuous fantasy season for David Johnson. Although DJ finished as the RB11, it was more so based on his ability to make something out of nothing — which should change under the one of the more creative offensive minds, Kliff Kingsbury. As Washington State QCC Drew Hollingshead told us, Kingsbury will not only utilize Johnson’s strength, speed and vision in the run game, but he’ll also find creative ways to deploy his elite receiving skill-set in the pass game to resurrect his fantasy career.
One of the more interesting (and maddening) tidbits about last season is that the Cards rushed DJ up the middle and into the heart of the opposing defense a whopping 156 times. For a little perspective, Ezekiel Elliott had the second most carries up the middle with only 89. Even with how brainless McCoy proved to be, Johnson was still a fantasy factor at times throughout the 2018 season.
With McCoy gone, Kingsbury calling the shots and the addition of Broncos’ OL coach Sean Kugler, the run game should be much more effective in 2019. As noted, Kingsbury will find ways to get DJ to the perimeter in the run game and also find creative mismatches in the pass game. There will be no more “three-yards and a cloud of dust” in Arizona, which makes Johnson a no-brainer bounce-back candidate for 2019.
David Johnson is back in our top 10 overall and needs to be a first round staple.
