Arizona Cardinals camp observations Day 9: Will Johnson dominates
Will Johnson built a reputation as one of college football’s premier ballhawks during his time at Michigan. In his 32 college games, he picked off nine passes, returning three of them for touchdowns. For a player with a whole toolbox of elite skills, this is his defining trait.
In the Arizona Cardinals' ninth practice of training camp, he showed what that looks like at the NFL level.
Matched up with Zay Jones on the perimeter during 11-on-11 drills, Johnson perfectly read Jones’ comeback route and cut in front of him. He then made a leaping catch, securing the interception as he went to ground.
It’s been a strong week of practice for Johnson, who has entrenched himself with the first team defense and is competing with Max Melton to be the Cardinals’ top outside corner. Both players will see significant snaps, but one of them will rotate out when Garrett Williams slides to outside corner — primarily in base defense looks.
So far in camp, Johnson has rotated out more often than Melton, but with more plays like his interception of Murray, he could change that.
“I feel like I’ve always been able to pick up the game pretty well and be an instinctive player,” Johnson said. “So I feel like that hasn’t been too hard for me. But obviously, there’s always things you’ve got to learn, and experience always helps, so I’m sure as I get more reps and more games, I’ll get better.”
The interception also continued a recent trend for the Cardinals' defense. Since they began practicing in pads earlier in the week, three different defensive backs — Johnson, Max Melton and Jalen Thompson — have intercepted Kyler Murray. Linebacker Mack Wilson also has an interception to his name.
Last season, the Cardinals were one of just nine teams to finish with fewer than 10 interceptions forced. In total, they had 17 takeaways, tied for the seventh-fewest in the league.
With the addition of Johnson, they’ll be looking to increase those numbers. The remade defensive line should also help. On Saturday, Murray’s interception was partially forced by pressure up the middle from Josh Sweat, who beat right guard Isaiah Adams with ease.
Here are some other notes from Day 9 of Cardinals camp:
Michael Wilson dealing with concussion
Receiver Michael Wilson is in concussion protocol after a collision in the August 1 practice, head coach Jonathan Gannon said.
Safety Budda Baker, whose leg collided with Wilson’s head, avoided injury.
Marvin Harrison Jr., meanwhile, missed his third consecutive day of practice with a knee injury. Gannon said that he is “trending in a good direction.”
James Conner and Calais Campbell both missed practice Saturday for veteran rest days.
In other injury news, the Cardinals placed wide receiver Quez Watkins on injured reserve, ending his season. They signed Nate McCollum, an undrafted free agent, to fill Watkins’ spot on the 90-man training camp roster. Watkins had been competing for a spot on the 53-man roster as a depth wide receiver.
James Conner: Cardinals have two ‘RB1s’
Throughout the spring and summer, Trey Benson has said that he wants the Cardinals to have two RB1s. On Saturday, James Conner — the presumptive starter — repeated that belief.
“We’re both RB1,” Conner said. “That’s how we’ve been approaching it and looking at it, truthfully. He’s gonna play a lot this year.”
Later, Conner was asked why he put that label on Benson, rather than describing himself as the starter.
“It’s not always like that, but in this situation, it is,” Conner replied.
So far in training camp, Conner’s assessment has been reflected on the field. Conner typically takes the first snaps with the first-team offense, but he and Benson have rotated and seen an equal amount of work with that unit.
It’s not a guarantee, though, that Conner’s workload will decrease significantly. Earlier in the week, offensive coordinator Drew Petzing replied “absolutely” when asked whether he still views Conner as a workhorse back.