David Johnson to skip Arizona Cardinals minicamp
Tuesday 12 June 2018 18:03, UK
Arizona Cardinals running back David Johnson has joined the list of NFL holdouts entering the final year of their rookie contract.
Multiple outlets have reported that Johnson is holding out of mandatory minicamp, which began on Tuesday.
According to reports this offseason, it is expected that the club will reach an agreement on a new contract with the 2015 third-round pick.
After earning first-team All-Pro honours in 2016, Johnson suffered a season-ending wrist fracture in Week 1 last season. He totalled just 23 yards on 11 carries and another 67 yards on six receptions.
In 2016, he ran for 1,239 yards, collected another 879 yards through the air, and scored 21 total touchdowns (including one on a kickoff return).
Johnson joins names such as Raiders defensive end Khalil Mack and Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald as players holding out or expected to hold out in hopes of landing an extension rather than play on the final year of their rookie contract.
But unlike Mack and Donald, the last two NFL Defensive Players of the Year, Johnson was not a first-round pick and thus does not get a fifth-year option. So while Mack (nearly $14m) and Donald (almost $7m) are guaranteed significant pay bumps this season, Johnson is set to make $1.8m in 2018.
Johnson also did not take part the team's offseason team activities (which were not mandatory) last week. He was on the field, but never left the sidelines and wore sweatpants and a hat.
When asked about Johnson afterward, new Cardinals head coach Steve Wilks said, "It's the offseason and I'm not going to really indulge in injuries or things like that. We're going to talk about the guys that are out there."
With Johnson sidelined, rookie fourth-round pick Chase Edmonds worked with the first-team offense during OTAs last week.
The Cardinals open the season at home against the Washington Redskins on September 9.
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