Cardinals Top CB Nears Return 8 Months After Achilles Tear

Budda Baker is the name everybody knows in the Arizona Cardinals' secondary, and Will Johnson was the team's second-round pick last year after earning All-American honors at Michigan.

Key points

• More news: Bears Insider Raises Concern Over Star CB's Status Ahead of 2026 Season.
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• Last year, he took another step forward, racking up 46 combined tackles, five pass breakups, one interception, and another forced fumble throughout 10 games (10 starts).
• With such a devastating injury occurring that late in the season, some wondered whether Williams could miss the start of the 2026 season.

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Williams was the Cardinals' third-round pick (No. 72 overall) out of Syracuse in 2023, and after appearing in just nine games (six starts) as a rookie, he broke out in 2024, finishing his second season in Arizona with 58 combined tackles, nine pass breakups, two interceptions, and a forced fumble throughout 16 games (11 starts).

Last year, he took another step forward, racking up 46 combined tackles, five pass breakups, one interception, and another forced fumble throughout 10 games (10 starts). But his season was cut short late in the year when he tore his Achilles in Week 16 during the Cardinals' 26-19 loss to Atlanta.

With such a devastating injury occurring that late in the season, some wondered whether Williams could miss the start of the 2026 season. Now, it looks like that won't be the case, with the team activating him off the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list on Thursday.

"A lot of work was put in, first and foremost, by him, and then a lot of people behind the scenes to get to this point, " new head coach Mike LaFleur remarked. "So happy for him. He had a smile on his face. We've known this day was coming for some time now."

In practice, the Cardinals enter the 2026 season with modest expectations. It is to be projected with a first-year head coach, a new offensive system, and a young core on both sides of the ball. But if Williams can obtain back to full strength by the start of the regular season, it would provide a major boost to this defense.

With Williams now set to return to practice, he has just over three weeks before Week 1 kicks off against the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium on Sunday, Sept. 13.

Taken together, the developments around cardinals Top CB Nears Return 8 Months After Achilles Tear point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.