TEMPE, Ariz. -- The Cardinals weren’t deterred by a liver condition in choosing offensive lineman Dorian Johnson in the fourth round of the NFL draft, while other teams chose to either keep passing on Johnson or take him completely off their board.
In Johnson, the Cardinals landed one of the top-rated guards in this year’s class. His durability -- a sign that he has figured out how to live with the liver condition that increased his enzymes to five times higher than normal -- allowed him to play 39 straight games at left guard. He’s 6 foot 5 and 305 pounds. After an offseason in an NFL training program, Dorian could be a mirror image of Cardinals left tackle Mike Iupati, whom he eventually could replace.
At the University of Pittsburgh, Johnson played in a pro-style offense, which he thinks will help him transition to the Cardinals offense easier than if he had played in a spread offense in college.
“My first two seasons I played under [former Pittsburgh head coach] Paul Chryst and we were a gap team,” Johnson said. “We played a lot of power plays, inside zone, we pounded the ball, and my last two years we had Coach [Pat] Narduzzi and [former Pitt offensive coordinator] Matt Canada, and it was the same thing. A lot of gap plays like inside zone, outside zone, so I think it will be easy for me to transition.”
Where he fits: Supplanting Iupati at left guard may be a stretch for the rookie, but with a good offseason and a good camp he could put a little pressure on Iupati to perform in 2017. Where Johnson may have the best shot at starting is by beating out Evan Boehm, who coach Bruce Arians said will be the starting right guard this season. Johnson has moved positions before, going from tackle to guard during his freshman year of college. More likely, however, Johnson could compete to be the swing guard, as either Boehm or Iupati’s backup, especially since Boehm could end up being the back-up center should A.Q. Shipley go down, which would cause an offensive line reshuffling. Johnson will be competing against the likes of Cole Toner and John Wetzel to break into Arizona’s rotation at guard.
What he said: “I can play anything,” Johnson said. “Anything that is asked of me, I’ll do it.”
What they said: “Physical player, excellent technician and extremely smart,” general manager Steve Keim said of Johnson. Later, when asked about which offensive linemen Arizona drafted this year would be ready to play in 2017, Keim said: “I think Dorian certainly has the potential.”