David Johnson Injury: Cardinals running back will miss two or three months

Arizona Cardinals running back David Johnson is expected to miss two or three months while recovering from surgery on his wrist injury, according to a report from NFL insider Adam Schefter. Schefter also notes Johnson will be placed on injured reserve, so this means he’ll definitely be out for at least eight weeks.

Losing Johnson is a big deal for the Cardinals. He led the NFL in total yards from scrimmage last season with 2,118 (for reference, Ezekiel Elliott was second with 1,994). Johnson’s 1,239 rushing yards ranked seventh in the league last season while his 879 receiving yards ranked 38th (first at his position). Johnson scored a total of 20 touchdowns for the Cardinals in 2016. He was easily an MVP and/or Offensive Player of the Year candidate.

Johnson’s injury means that he won’t be available for the Cardinals’ game against the Eagles in Philadelphia on Sunday, Oct. 8. The last time Johnson visited Philly was as a rookie in 2015. He had 187 rushing yards, three rushing touchdowns, four receptions, and 42 receiving yards in that matchup.

With Johnson eligible to return in Week 10, it’s possible he’ll be active for the Cardinals’ games against the Washington Redskins in Week 15 and New York Giants in Week 16.

The Cardinals didn’t look great in their Week 1 tilt against the Lions. Arizona got beaten comfortably by a final score of 35 to 23.

The Eagles and Cardinals will face off in Week 5, which is a little under a month away.