The Arizona Cardinals came out of last week with a top-rated NFL Draft class by most accounts.
Second-round pick Will Johnson has a lot to do with that narrative after falling out of the first round and going No. 47 overall to Arizona.
Already being dubbed as one of the biggest steals this draft, ESPN’s Field Yates doubled down on that thinking while on with Arizona Sports’ Bickley & Marotta.
“To me, it’s a home run at that stage regardless of how things turn out, because he’s just too talented of a player to slide any further than he did,” Yates said Wednesday. “Will really had great tape for 2.5 seasons at Michigan. He’s got awesome size, great ball skills, very instinctual.
“He’s a guy that made huge plays in big moments at Michigan during their National Championship season, but I’m not a doctor and each team’s tolerance on where a guy is worth going based off of whatever he is dealing with is different. But I really have a hard time thinking that even if he’s not a great player or even makes the roster and plays for you, to get a guy who has that much potential upside at that point in the draft is just too good to ignore.”
Johnson heads to Arizona following three seasons at Michigan that included 2023’s National Championship run.
In each of those three seasons, he recorded at least two interceptions and three passes defensed.
That includes his abbreviated final year at Michigan that was cut short due to shoulder issues and turf toe. Despite appearing in just six games last season, Johnson still reeled in a pair of interceptions (both returned for touchdowns).
Michigan CB Will Johnson is heading to the Cardinals
One of the best CB's in the country, the Cards got an absolute STEAL pic.twitter.com/d4tN6O8nBH
— B/R Gridiron (@brgridiron) April 26, 2025
Even with the shortened season, Johnson still was honored as a Third Team All-American by The Associated Press and was named an All-Big-Ten honorable mention by conference coaches.
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“High-level competition, the guy has size, he’s a very good athlete, the takeaway ability is pretty rare,” assistant Cardinals GM Dave Sears said Saturday post-draft. “He can read routes, he can jump routes and then he can catch the ball and make plays with it.
“Obviously, he’s got all the pick sixes but that’s a guy that can go toe-to-toe, play man coverage against big-time players and he can make plays that impact the game.”
Why did Will Johnson drop to the second round in the 2025 NFL Draft
The biggest knock on Johnson comes from his injury history.
On top of the shoulder and turf toe issues this past season, the cornerback didn’t participate at the NFL Draft Combine due to a hamstring injury.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport also reported a knee issue that had red-flagged teams when evaluating Johnson.
The cornerback, however, knows where his body is at.
“They’re saying things about my knee and I haven’t really dealt with it in two years,” Johnson said. “So that’s definitely frustrating, but it’s all good. I’m at where I’m supposed to be and I’m just happy to be a Cardinal now.
“I know what I’m dealing with and I know I’m healthy,” he added. “I know how my body feels. I’m just going to go out there and show that on Sundays and show everybody else what they missed out on.”
The Cardinals don’t seem too concerned with where Johnson’s at health-wise, either.
“Really did the same process we do with all the prospects,” general manager Monti Ossenfort said after Day 2 of the draft. “It’s an extensive process and ended up good with Will and excited to get him going.”
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