Paris Johnson Jr. is the second Buckeye off the board.
The former Ohio State offensive lineman is officially headed to the next level as the Arizona Cardinals traded up to select Johnson with the No. 6 overall pick in the first round of the 2023 NFL draft Thursday night in Kansas City. Johnson is the highest-drafted Ohio State offensive tackle since Orlando Pace and the first Ohio State OT to go in the first round since Taylor Decker in 2016.
Draft hugs >@ParisJohnsonJr | @AZCardinals
— NFL (@NFL) April 28, 2023
: 2023 #NFLDraft on NFLN/ESPN/ABC
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With the 6th Pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, the Arizona Cardinals select Paris Johnson Jr. pic.twitter.com/tbIUExCBqt
— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) April 28, 2023
A five-star recruit and the ninth overall prospect out of Cincinnati’s Princeton High School in the 2020 class, Johnson’s trajectory as an eventual early-round NFL draft pick was never in doubt.
While he only saw the field for brief stints as a true freshman during the COVID-shortened 2020 season at Ohio State, Johnson foreshadowed what was to come when he filled in as a first-team lineman for several snaps in both the Buckeyes’ Sugar Bowl win over Clemson and their national championship game loss to Alabama.
Johnson got the chance to become a full-time starter in his sophomore season, but it wasn’t at his natural position of offensive tackle. Due to the emergence of Dawand Jones in the preseason and the veteran status of Nicholas Petit-Frere, Johnson moved inside to right guard and started all 13 games for the Buckeyes. Johnson earned second-team All-Big Ten honors from the conference coaches and was a third-team selection by the media as he helped anchor an offense that finished No. 1 nationally in total offense and scoring offense.
Entering his junior season in 2022, Johnson switched back to left tackle where he once again started all 13 games for the Buckeyes, finishing his Ohio State career with 26 consecutive starts on the front line across two seasons. Johnson helped Ohio State achieve the No. 9 national rank in total offense and the No. 2 mark in scoring, and earned the status of unanimous All-American for his efforts.
Johnson was a two-time academic All-Big Ten selection and graduated with a degree in journalism in less than three years. Johnson’s charitable organization, the Paris Johnson Jr. Foundation, also earned him the Armed Forces Merit Award this past November for his work to help veterans and others in need.
Johnson officially declared for the draft on Jan. 10, and less than four months later, his lifelong dream has been realized.
He becomes the only Buckeye on the Cardinals’ current roster and the first Buckeye drafted by the team since Beanie Wells in 2009. He’s the second member of his family to be drafted by the Cardinals, as his father Paris Johnson was drafted by the Cardinals in the fifth round in 1999.
Johnson was one of three Buckeyes drafted in the first round along with C.J. Stroud (No. 2 overall, Houston Texans) and Jaxon Smith-Njigba (No. 20 overall, Seattle Seahawks).
