David Johnson

The Arizona Cardinals originally planned to draft Nebraska running back Ameer Abdullah in the second round (55th overall) and were speaking to Abdullah on the phone when they discovered the Detroit Lions had selected him with their second round pick (54th overall).

After failing to draft Abdullah, they changed their draft plans and opted to select David Johnson.

Johnson was the only player drafted from Northern Iowa in that year.

David Jerome Johnson Sr. (born December 16, 1991) is an American football running back who is a free agent.

He was the highest drafted player out of Northern Iowa since Jacksonville Jaguars selected offensive lineman Brad Meester with the 60th overall pick in the 2000 NFL draft.

As a senior, Johnson led Clinton to an 11–1 record while accounting for a school-record 42 touchdowns and was selected 2009 Outstanding Offensive Player for Clinton.

In four seasons, Johnson compiled 4,682 rushing yards (on 5.4 yards per carry) and 49 rushing touchdowns along with 1,734 receiving yards and another 14 receiving touchdowns.

Johnson took up kick returning as a senior, averaging 36.5 yards per attempt and returning one for a touchdown.

He earned second-place finishes in both the 4 × 200 and 4 × 400 relays at the 2009 Drake Relays, while also recording a personal-best time of 11.03 seconds in the 100-meter dash.

At the 2009 Iowa State T&F Championships, he took ninth in the preliminary rounds of the 200-meter dash with a time of 22.34 seconds.

Also a starter on the basketball team, Johnson was named second-team All-conference as a junior.

He helped lead the River Kings to the state tournament during his senior season, where he averaged a team-best 15.7 points and 7.9 rebounds per game.

He was a first-team All-league selection in the Mississippi Athletic Conference and a third-team All-State pick by the Iowa Newspaper Association.

He was also a second-team All-state selection by The Des Moines Register.

Johnson committed to the University of Northern Iowa to play college football.

The only other school to offer Johnson an athletic scholarship was Illinois State.

He was invited to play at the 2010 Shrine Bowl All-Star Game, where he showed excellent vision and speed.

Academically, Johnson maintained over a 3.0 grade point average throughout high school.

In track & field, Johnson was a two-time Drake and state qualifier.

Johnson attended Northern Iowa from 2010 to 2014.

After redshirting in 2010, he played in 13 games, with five starts, as a redshirt freshman in 2011.

He had 179 rushes for 822 yards with nine rushing touchdowns and also had 33 receptions for 422 yards and three touchdowns.

As a sophomore in 2012, Johnson started seven of 12 games.

He finished the year with 1,021 rushing yards and 13 rushing touchdowns.

As a junior, Johnson started 10 of 11 games and rushed for 1,286 yards on 222 carries.

As a senior, Johnson rushed for 1,553 yards on 287 carries with 17 rushing touchdowns and returned 12 kickoffs for 438 yards (36.5 average) and one touchdown.

During his senior season, he set numerous school records, including career rushing yards, career rushing touchdowns, and career all-purpose yards.

He was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the third round of the 2015 NFL Draft.

He played college football at Northern Iowa.

Johnson attended Clinton High School in Clinton, Iowa, where he was a three-sport star in football, track, and basketball.

He played as a running back and defensive back for the River Kings high school football team.

He set numerous school records including touchdowns in a season, career receptions, career receiving yards, career and single-season total offense and single game record for touchdowns.

Following a standout career at UNI, Johnson declared for the 2015 NFL draft and was projected to be a second or third round pick after a promising showing during the NFL combine and UNI's Pro Day.

The Arizona Cardinals selected Johnson in the third round (86th overall) in the 2015 NFL draft.

He was the seventh running back to be selected that year.

On May 18, 2015, Johnson was signed to a four-year, $2.9 million contract with a $639,373 signing bonus and $639,373 guaranteed.

Johnson opened the season as the fourth string running back behind veterans Andre Ellington, Chris Johnson, and Stepfan Taylor.

On September 13, 2015, Johnson played in his first career game, against the New Orleans Saints, and finished the season opener with one reception for a 55-yard touchdown.

The following week, he received more playing time against the Chicago Bears after Ellington was injured the previous game.

Johnson carried the ball five times for 42 yards and scored his first career rushing touchdown in a 48–23 victory over the Bears.