The Cardinals have a new running back in Adrian Peterson and it sounds like they’re going to be leaning on him for a while. The “earliest” that Johnson could conceivably return to the field is around Thanksgiving, coach Bruce Arians tells SiriusXM NFL Radio (link via Kent Somers of The Arizona Republic). 
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The Cardinals take on the Texans on Nov. 19, the Sunday before Thanksgiving, before facing the Jaguars the following week. Only under the best of circumstances will we see Johnson in uniform by then. In theory, Johnson is eligible to come off of IR for Nov. 9 against the Seahawks, but that’s apparently not in the cards.
On the plus side, Johnson says everything is going according to plan so far.
“Rehab’s going great,” Johnson said on Wednesday. “Just got my cast. Feeling good.”
Last year, Johnson was the Cardinals’ top offensive weapon as he totaled over 2,100 yards from scrimmage and scored 20 touchdowns. The Cardinals are hoping that Peterson can recapture some of his old magic and restore some of what Johnson provided to the offense.