Cardinals land top-10 talent at No. 47 overall with Michigan's Will Johnson after knee injury slide

Billy Heyen

Cardinals land top-10 talent at No. 47 overall with Michigan's Will Johnson after knee injury slide image

ESPN's Adam Schefter summed it up best: "Last year, Will Johnson may have been a top-5 or top-10 pick."

On Friday night, in the NFL Draft's second round, the Arizona Cardinals chose Johnson with the No. 47 overall pick.

It's quite the fall for Johnson, who has dealt with knee issues that made him a big question mark for some teams.

At No. 47, though, he's worth the risk for the Cardinals.

Arizona is still trying to win with Kyler Murray at QB and has a lot of defensive weapons. Now, they have one of the most talented players in his draft class.

The Cardinals will just have to hope Johnson can get and stay on the field.

ESPN's draft broadcast compared Johnson's ball skills to Hall of Famer Champ Bailey.

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At Michigan, Johnson played in parts of three seasons.

He had four interceptions, including a pick-six, in the 2023 national championship season.

In just six 2024 games, Johnson had two pick-sixes.

Clearly, he's got star potential.

He'll have the most scrutinized knee in Arizona now.

If Johnson can recapture his health, he'll be a playmaking cornerback in the NFL for the next decade.

And if that's what the Cardinals just got at No. 47, it's an absolute steal.

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Billy Heyen

Billy Heyen is a freelance writer with The Sporting News. He is a 2019 graduate of Syracuse University who has written about many sports and fantasy sports for The Sporting News. Sports reporting work has also appeared in a number of newspapers, including the Sandusky Register and Rochester Democrat & Chronicle