Displeased with his running backs, Arizona Cardinals coach Bruce Arians suggested Monday that he would look outside the organization for alternatives.
That backfield help might just come in the form of free agent Chris Johnson.
The Cardinals have made a one-year offer to Johnson, reports ESPN's Dianna Russini.
Johnson has been out of a job since the Jetsdeclined his 2015 contract option in February. The 29-year-old was arrested on weapons charges in January and a took a bullet in the shoulder during a March drive-by shooting.
Once Adrian Peterson's chief competition as the NFL's top back, Johnson fell behind Chris Ivory with the Jets last season, gaining a career-low 663 yards on 155 carries.
The Cardinals are on the hunt for veteran depth because starter Andre Ellington, rookie David Johnson and Marion Grice have missed time with hamstring woes.
"I'm not pleased with the time that (Ellington) and David have lost," Arians said Monday, "and I wasn't that fired up about the running backs' performances Saturday. (The) ball was on the ground, not hitting holes. I thought we should have scored on a couple of those runs where we were one-on-one with the safety and the backside linebacker and we get stopped."
Arians added Tuesday that there's "no way in hell" he will play the rookie Johnson early in the season if the former Northern Iowa star misses training camp with hamstring woes.
If the veteran Johnson accepts Arizona's offer, he will compete with Grice, Stepfan Taylor, Kerwynn Williams and Robert Hughes for snaps behind Ellington.
The latest Around The NFL Podcast discusses Steve Smith's retirement news and predicts the training camp QB battles.
