After eight NFL seasons, David Johnson, an All-Pro running back for the Cardinals, retires

After eluding opponents for eight seasons in the NFL, David Johnson is quitting football.

In an Instagram post on Sunday, the former All-Pro running back expressed his excitement for "my next career path in life."

"I don't know exactly what that will be," said Johnson, "but I hope it will bring me the same passion, excitement, and love as football did!"

Johnson was a quick addition to the very successful offensive schemes of Bruce Arians in the middle of the 2010s after being selected by the Arizona Cardinals in the third round of the 2015 NFL Draft. Johnson, a native of Northern Iowa, led an Arizona squad that advanced to the NFC Championship Game with 1,038 yards from scrimmage and 12 touchdowns overall in his first year. Johnson finished the season as a legitimate RB1 and a contender for Offensive Rookie of the Year after starting the campaign as CJ2K, the legendary Chris Johnson of the Titans.

With 373 touches, 2,118 yards from scrimmage, and 20 touchdowns in 2016, Johnson topped the league in these stats. Aside from being named to the first team of the NFL and receiving his first (and only) Pro Bowl invitation, Johnson also placed third in the vote for Offensive Player of the Year, behind only Tom Brady in the end but ahead of players like Aaron Rodgers and Matt Ryan. With 1,239 running yards, Johnson set a record for the most in Cardinals history, surpassing even Ottis Anderson's run of 1,200+ yard seasons in the early 1980s.

Thanks to his special ability to blend speed and size, the dual-threat running back was a fantasy football favorite who could dash through and slip by opposition defenses.

But in 2017, Johnson's promising career took a turn for the worst. In Week 1 of the season, the tailback dislocated his wrist; he would not play again until 2018. Prior to the 2018 season, he signed a $39 million contract extension with Arizona, but he never followed through on it.

Star wideout DeAndre Hopkins was traded to Houston in the 2020 offseason for Johnson, in one of the most lopsided moves in modern NFL history. Hopkins and a fourth-round selection were traded for Johnson along with second- and fourth-round picks to the Texans. Bill O'Brien, the general manager and coach at the time, carried out the trade, which was widely criticized. Johnson's success in Houston didn't help either.

In only two seasons with the Texans, he amassed 1,458 rushing yards and nine touchdowns in 25 games. (In contrast, Hopkins played 35 games over three seasons in Arizona, catching 221 receptions for 2,696 yards and 17 touchdowns.) Johnson played with the Saints for 16 touches before ending his career in 2022.

In addition to 2,805 receiving yards and 18 receiving touchdowns on 277 catches, Johnson finishes the football season with 4,071 running yards and 39 rushing scores on 1,007 tries.