Offseason Review: Day 23: The Arizona Cardinals
###Arizona Cardinals
Division: NFC West
###Coaching Changes
DC Loss: Todd Bowles leaves for Jets HC Position
Todd Bowles was our Defensive Coordinator for only two years before he left us as arguably the top head coaching candidate in the whole league. This loss will be felt, but our talented player on defense will ease the transition from a top 2 DC in the league to a rookie DC. Bowles took our Linebacker coach, Mike Caldwell with him to New York.
DC Hiring: James Bettcher Promoted to DC
James Bettcher was the Outside Linebacker coach both years Todd Bowles was the DC. He is an unknown to most fans, but is expected to do well considering we are not changing our system.
LB Hiring: Bob Sanders hired after Raiders let him go
Bob Sanders is expected to be a nice replacement for Mike Caldwell as the Linebacker Coach. At 61 he's an experienced Coach who will hopefully take over with no wrinkles and be a good coach to our young talent.
###Free Agency
Players lost/cut
| Player | Position | New team |
|---|---|---|
| Dan Williams | DT | Raiders |
| Darnell Dockett | DE | 49ers (ugh) |
| Antonio Cromartie | CB | Jets |
| Sam Acho | OLB | Bears |
Dan Williams - Free Agent - D+ - This loss won't necessarily hurt, but this will be felt. He was a top 3-4 run stopping Defensive Tackle and was a key rotational player for us. I rate this move a D+, because our DL is still deep and strong even without Big Booty Judy.
Darnell Dockett - Cut - C+ - Darnell Dockett has been the heart and soul of the Cardinals defense since we drafted him in 2004. I really do not like this move. I feel like this sends the wrong message to veteran players around the NFL. We let our 2nd longest tenured player go, because of $3.5mil. From an on the field perspective though, this loss is not significant. He had a torn ACL last year, and our defense played fine without him. This jersey will never look right to me.
Antonio Cromartie - Free Agent - F - I really wish that we had not held onto the excess cap, and had offered Cro what he wanted. He obviously wanted to go play for Bowles with Revis, but he would have eased the transition for our new DC, and helped as the Corner opposite Patrick. He was the best corner on our team last year, and was a key reason we could run the Cover 0 as often as we did. Plus, he looked damn fine in a Cardinals uniform Ughh this move sucks.
Players signed
| Player | Position | Old Team | Length | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lamarr Woodley | DE | Raiders | 1 year | $2.5MM |
| Mike Iupati | OG | 49ers | 5 years | $40MM |
| AQ Shipley | C | Colts | 2 years | $1.57MM |
| Sean Weatherspoon | LB | Falcons | 1 year | $3.85MM |
| Michael Floyd | WR | Cardinals | 5th Year Option | $7.32MM |
| Corey Peters | DT | Falcons | 3 Years | $9.15MM |
| Mike Leach | LS | Cardinals | 1 Year | $1.05MM |
Mike Iupati is, in my opinion, the best move we made this offseason. Our run-blocking line the past three years has been abysmal. Last offseason we added LT Veldheer, who is a mauler in addition to being one of the league best pass-blocking Left Tackles. These two player will play next to each other and create the ultimate tag team as run blocker.(Think Jones-Hutch lite)
Michael Floyd has been a fantastic #2 for the Cardinals since being drafted in 2012. He hasn't posted a 1000 yard season yet, but with the emergence of John Brown I doubt any receiver of ours will break 1k this year.
Sean Weatherspoon should see significant playing time as the ILB for as long as Daryl Washington is/may be suspended.
###Draft
| Round | Number | Player | Position | School |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 24 | D.J. Humphries | T | Florida |
| 2 | 58 | Markus Golden | DE | Mizzou |
| 3 | 86 | David Johnson | RB | Northern Iowa |
| 4 | 116 | Rodney Gunter | DT | Delaware St. |
| 5 | 158 | Shaq Riddick | DE | West Virginia |
| 5 | 159 | JJ Nelson | WR | UAB |
| 7 | 256 | Gerald Christian | TE | Louisville |
DJ Humphries is a left tackle who is better in pass protection than he is run blocking. This is because he is a very mobile and agile player. His footwork has something left to be desired, but with an offseason working with Veldheer and the other offensive lineman, it should improve. I expect Humphries to start at RT and perform reasonably well.
Markus Golden is a very productive pass-rusher with his first-step quickness and powerful strike. He's a bit of a tweener, however, as he doesn't have elite strength to play defensive end and doesn't have much experience as a 3-4 outside linebacker. But he's a tone-setter with an outstanding motor. We wanted speed at DE, and that's what we got. He is a good replacement to OLB/DE Sam Acho, and should fill in to our aggressive blitzing system very nicely.
David Johnson is a bigger back, although he doesn't break as many tackles as you'd like to see from a guy his size. He's a very effective runner, and he is a highly productive pass-catcher out of the backfield. He has very good vision at the line of scrimmage and in the open field. This pick is very good. Andre Ellington is a smaller back who has proven that he is not truly capable of handling a seasons worth of #1 RB carries. David Johnson is likely to have a 40/60 or 50/50 split with Andre.
Rodney Gunter has a quality combination of size, strength and point-of-attack skills. He is at his best against the run where he displays heavy hands and above-average upper-body power. He has adequate quickness that provides him with upside as a pass-rusher. However he is raw in this area and needs to improve his technique if he wants to compete with Okafor and Golden for reps.
Shaq Riddick is an outside linebacker who has excellent length (6-6, 244 lbs) and brings quality athleticism. He has upside as a pass-rusher with a quick first step and adequate flexibility bending the edge. However, he is a bit lean in his lower half, will struggle in fights against more powerful blockers and lacks ideal speed to power.
JJ Nelson lacks ideal size (5-10, 156 lbs), is extremely raw as a route runner and has inconsistent ball skills. However, he has world-class speed and is extremely dangerous with the ball in his hands, particularly as a returner on special teams, which is where he will need to excel if he wants to prove himself to the coaches. John Brown has the role of small, insanely fast deep threat locked down, so JJ Nelson will have to fight to compete for reps.
Gerald Christian, AKA Mr. Irrelevant, is light for a blocking tight end and doesn't have great top-end speed or the change-of-direction skills for a receiving tight end. On the other hand, he has the massive hands to pluck the ball out of the air, he flashes the ability to separate from linebackers underneath, and he is above average locating seams in zone looks. He is also an adequate positional blocker with above-average upper-body strength. He flashes the ability to shoot his hands inside and lock on. Our TE situation is very confusin. Coach Arians doesnt use TE's in the passing game as much as he uses them to run-block, so Christians experience in Louisville's system does not translate very well to the NFL.
###Other Offseason News that Affected the Team
The biggest offseason new is the restructuring of Larry Fitzgerald contract. Fitz was due $23.6MM in 2015, which is ridiculous even for somebody of Fitz's stature in Arizona. We love the guy here, and I'm pretty sure he loves us too because he agreed to a 2 year $22MM contract to probably last him until the end of his historical NFL career.
###Projected Starting Lineup
Have at least:
- QB: Carson Palmer. This isn't a spot for up for grabs, this is his spot to keep. I expect the best year of his career this year. I dont think that is a stretch at all either: he has an improved Offense all around.
- RB: Andre Ellington. I expect this to be his position for about 50-60% of snaps. David Johnson will give him a run for his money
- FB: Robert Hughes, or as I like to call him FAT ELLINGTON! Seriously, the resemblance is weird
- TE1: Troy Niklas. I have no expectations for Troy. He has dealt with injuries since he was drafted, but has apparently made a solid impression on Coach Arians, so I like him too.
- TE2: Darren Fells
- WR1: Larry Fitzgerald. I expect Larry to have another 900 yard 9-10 TD season. He doesn't need to make plays like he used to due to the abundance of playmakers on our offense. He just needs to catch what is thrown to him, which he did the best in the league last year.
- WR2: Michael Floyd may very well emerge to be the next star receiver in a short line of star Cardinals receivers. His play style very much reminds me of 09' Anquan Boldin in the fact he strives in jumpballs they can use their body to catch.
- WR#: John "Smokey" Brown. John "Smoke Nate Allen and Cary Williams" Brown. (All of the gifs ive posted of John Brown are game winning TDs, mind you (; Against the Eagles, Chargers, and Rams!) His spot is most likely his to keep, but Jaron brown could always work his way up.
- LT: Jared Veldheer. Veldheer is one of the league best LT, and I don't expect one offseason to change that. No battle for his spot.
- LG: Mike Iupati. His pass blocking leaves some thing to be desired, but this run-blocker would be a tremendous improvement over last years mess of a LG situation. No competition.
- C: AQ Shipley
- RG: This spot is confusing, because I am conflicted by personal bias. One one had, I have to root for our 2013 First Round pick, Jonathan Cooper to do well. While on the other hand i need to root for my personal friend Earl Watford to push for this spot. At this current time though, Cooper is winning this battle.
- RT: DJ Humphries
- RDE: Calais Campbell. One of the league absolute most dominant 3-4 DE's. I expect him to FSU just like the past 3 years.
- DT: Frostee Rucker. Cory Redding is also in contention for this position. Last season we played a "DT by committee" type scheme so this is not an important position to have a designated "Starter"
- LDE: Markus Golden.
- LOLB: Alex Okafor. He caught fire at the end of last season and hopes to not look back.
- LILB: Sean Weatherspoon. I expect Sean to hold this position until Daryl Washington gets reinstated.
- RILB: Kevin Minter. Played well last year next to Larry Foote, but gets to run the show this year. I think he will play great in coverage and help against the run just like last year.
- ROLDB: Matt Shaughnessy. He isn't very good. He is a run stopper who can cover or pass rush. Not super effective at all.
- CB1: Patrick Peterson. Now, he may very well be the most hated player on this sub. Anytime he is mentioned fans just have to mention how poor he played this year. I expect Patrick to overcome his disability he had to adjust to last year, and return to 2012 form. There are talks he may return punts, but I don't believe them.
- CB2: Jerraud Powers. Played very well as a slot corner last year with Cro as the starter, but he looks to maintain success throughout the transition to the outside.
- NCB: Tyrann Mathieu. Honey Badger don't give a shit about his poor 2014 season, because he knows he was injured for most of it anyways. Mathieu looks to regain the position of top slot corner in the league, and into the role of dynamic play maker once again.
- FS: Tyrann Mathieu in base defense, Rashad Johnson in Nickel.
- SS: Tony Jefferson
- K: Chandler Catanzaro
- P: Dave Zastudil
- KR/PR JJ Nelson. Patrick Peterson may field some punts though.
###Position Group Strengths and Weaknesses
Position groups: Ratings compared to rest of league
- QB - B- - Palmer/Stanton are a pretty good QB1/QB2 duo. If one gets hurt, we do not have to look for outside players to sign, and we have a capable backup who knows our system with starting experience.
- Backfield - B - We have a capable starter in Ellington with an excellent backup in David Johnson.
- OL - B- - We have a very solid LT, LG, C, & RT but our RG is a question. 4/5 is 80%, in America, That's a B-.
- Pass catchers - B+ - Two stud receivers in Fitz and Floyd with a speedy playmaker in John Brown. Plus a big bodied TE in Troy Niklas all make for a strong receiving corp.
- DL - B- - Outside of Calais Campbell our lineman are just unproven. C is average, and Calais makes them above average.
- LB - C- None of our linebackers are proven commodities. Not much to base it off of.
- Secondary - C+ Having play makers like Peterson and Mathieu sure help the secondary. Rashad Johnson receiving an All-Pro vote last year also help our case.
Posted Jul 11, 2015, 3:18 PM UTC · edited