The Arizona Cardinals are hurting at running back right now. Chris Johnson is out with a broken tibia and Andre Ellington is dealing with a bad case of turf toe, a notoriously nagging injury for ball-carriers. That leaves third-round rookie David Johnson as the go-to guy in Arizona's backfield.
When given playing time earlier this season, Johnson impressed and displayed a nose for the endzone. Now that he's the starter for the Cardinals, fantasy football owners should expect some solid forthcoming production. Even ESPN Senior Fantasy Analyst Matthew Berry agrees.
"...Chris Johnson is out, Andre Ellington is banged up so now David Johnson will get the majority of work for the first time in his career," Berry wrote in his weekly Love/Hate column. "Already showing a penchant for scoring...he has seven scores on just 54 total touches this season. Shocking that a Jeff Fisher team is underperforming, but yeah, the Rams are 28th against the run the past four weeks. This is actually a really good matchup for [Johnson]."
Piggybacking off of Berry, St. Louis is allowing an average of 16.5 fantasy points to opposing running backs per week. They have allowed seven total touchdowns to the position and a whopping six receptions per game, making Johnson a solid PPR option this week. Given the amount of work both C. Johnson and Ellington got, the rookie RB could be in line for some serious production.
Arizona ranks 11th in rushing attempts (309) and the duo of Ellington and C. Johnson have combined for 34 targets. With that amount of touches, Johnson could become a major factor for the NFL's highest-scoring offense (32.3 points per game). This is especially true if Ellington misses any time.
Make sure to scoop the rookie up if he's still available on waivers.
