David Johnson, the Arizona Cardinals running back was recently prominently displayed on the cover of Sports Illustrated. He was drafted into the league by the Cardinals in the 2015 draft, after leading a successful college career at Northern Iowa.

The running back used the attention he received from the cover as an opportunity to promise Cardinal fans that he would only continue to grow as a player. The cover displays several miniature depictions of competing NFL stars attempting to bring a full-sized Johnson down. Sports Illustrated seemed to communicate a message that in a certain sense, it’s David Johnson vs the league as a whole. Some of his rivals also shown on the cover include, perhaps most notably, Richard Sherman. The cover payed nothing but respect to the up-and-coming running back, describing him as possessing “mutant greatness”.

Rumors of greatness to come seem to be circulating around Johnson’s name this offseason. The NFLPA listed him as their top pick out of 50, with regards to rising stars in the league. He is also among the top 50 players in the league currently selling the most merchandise. Johnson is highly respected among his peers, who consider him one of the top 100 players in the NFL. Most in the fantasy football community view an addition of Johnson as a tremendous asset to any team.

Johnson had over 1,200 yards of rushing in the 2016 season, which was only his second year playing professional football. Bruce Arians, the Cardinals coach, is building an offense designed around Johnson. His plan is for the young running back to receive no less than 30 touches on a game by game basis.

Other regional covers included magazine editions that featured Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, and JJ Watt. Tom Brady was displayed on the national edition cover.