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Arizona_Sting
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With all due respect to the AFC North and NFC North, the NFC West is the best division in football. The Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers are both legitimate Super Bowl contenders, and the St. Louis Rams have a tremendous amount of young talent. I see the Arizona Cardinals as the bottom-feeders in the division, but I really like what they've done this offseason. Could they surprise and make the playoffs?
Let's take a look at the reasons it could happen.
For starters, Arizona's QB play can't be much worse this year than it was last year. Trading for Carson Palmer was a solid move, and he presents a clear upgrade at quarterback. Palmer doesn't throw it as well as he once did, but he still has a strong arm and can execute Bruce Arians' downfield passing game. Palmer has elite weapons to throw to now and is in a far better situation than the one he was thrust into in Oakland. He needs to cut down on the interceptions, but the scheme and supporting cast should help in that regard. Palmer also is very good at not taking sacks, which is key with Arizona's poor offensive line.
Although the Cardinals' offensive line was dismal in 2012, it did improve late in the season, especially at the tackle spots. Levi Brown is far from an elite left tackle, but, the last we saw of him before injury, he was playing adequately on the blind side. Bobby Massie has the tools to be a middle-of-the-road starting right tackle and showed definite signs of developing into exactly that late in his rookie season. He should be better in his second NFL season but might have to move to guard, as Arizona recently wisely signed Eric Winston to be its starting right tackle. It was the interior of Arizona's offensive line that was historically poor. Yes, recently signed Jonathan Cooper is a rookie, but I thought he was the best prospect in this past draft and see many Pro Bowls in his future. With Brown's return and the additions of Winston and Cooper, Arizona has options up front and much more high-quality talent.
Offensively, Arians wants to throw deep downfield -- and Arizona certainly has the weapons to do so in Larry Fitzgerald and Michael Floyd -- especially if the protection is improved. There will be a lot of vertical routes in this attack, and, with the wealth of attention Fitzgerald is sure to command, Floyd could be in prime position to exploit single coverage with regularity. Arians and Palmer also won't be averse to throwing 50/50 passes, where the receiver is more or less covered, to Floyd in single coverage or even to Fitzgerald when he sees extra attention. Andre Roberts is set up to be one of the premier third receivers in the league and could be used in more quick-hitting routes that allow him to run after the catch. The wild card here is Rob Housler at tight end. Not much of an inline blocker, Housler has a rare height-speed combination. Expect him to often be scorching up the middle of the field on deep seam patterns.
But Arians also wants to run the football. Look back to his days as offensive coordinator in Pittsburgh and you see that he isn't as pass-happy as many tend to think. The Cardinals' rushing attack was poor last season but should be much improved with Rashard Mendenhall and a (hopefully) healthy Ryan Williams. Arians' history implies that this will be a base power running team, but the offseason additions of Winston and Cooper, both of whom move very well for their respective positions, also implies that we will see more mobile zone blocking from Arians' offense. Having such fit and mobile linemen also should allow for more up-tempo play calling, as they are less likely to tire at such a pace.
The improvements on offense also should positively affect the defense, as that unit likely will not have to log nearly as many snaps and won't be thrust into such disadvantageous situations in its own end of the field after critical turnovers. I think this defense is weaker at safety than it was in 2012, but stronger in most other areas on this side of the ball. And Patrick Peterson should only continue to improve into a true shutdown corner.
It is a bit of a concern where the edge rush will come from, but I believe that we will see many more 4-3 looks from this defense. Much like the recent signing of Winston on the other side of the line of scrimmage, Arizona's recent addition of John Abraham could pay off huge as that much-needed situational pass-rusher. The additions of Winston and Abraham this late in the offseason could end up as gigantic short-term additions.
More 4-3 fronts could work very well for Arizona. When the Cardinals go with base 4-3 personnel, their linebackers should be exceptional, with a combination of Daryl Washington (when he returns from at least a four-game suspension), Karlos Dansby and Kevin Minter -- as well as Jasper Brinkley, a true two-down run-stuffing middle linebacker. In front of these excellent linebackers, the Cardinals could have Abraham at the weak defensive end, talented Calais Campbell at the strong end position, Darnell Dockett as the three-technique and Dan Williams as a one-shade on the nose. Dockett is perfectly suited to play a Warren Sapp-like role in such a defense and could be one of the most disruptive defensive linemen in football if consistently asked to play such a style. That front seven, if structured how I suggest, could be among the best in football.
The Cardinals are far from a perfect team and have plenty of question marks heading into this season. But of more concern is the strength of their competition. Although I like the additions Arizona has made this offseason, the NFC is simply too strong for it to make the playoffs. Not only do the Cardinals have to play six games against NFC West teams but I don't believe they're better than the teams they'd be fighting for the final wild-card spot. Still, there are a lot of reasons for optimism this season in Arizona, and this season should be far better than last.
Let's take a look at the reasons it could happen.
For starters, Arizona's QB play can't be much worse this year than it was last year. Trading for Carson Palmer was a solid move, and he presents a clear upgrade at quarterback. Palmer doesn't throw it as well as he once did, but he still has a strong arm and can execute Bruce Arians' downfield passing game. Palmer has elite weapons to throw to now and is in a far better situation than the one he was thrust into in Oakland. He needs to cut down on the interceptions, but the scheme and supporting cast should help in that regard. Palmer also is very good at not taking sacks, which is key with Arizona's poor offensive line.
Although the Cardinals' offensive line was dismal in 2012, it did improve late in the season, especially at the tackle spots. Levi Brown is far from an elite left tackle, but, the last we saw of him before injury, he was playing adequately on the blind side. Bobby Massie has the tools to be a middle-of-the-road starting right tackle and showed definite signs of developing into exactly that late in his rookie season. He should be better in his second NFL season but might have to move to guard, as Arizona recently wisely signed Eric Winston to be its starting right tackle. It was the interior of Arizona's offensive line that was historically poor. Yes, recently signed Jonathan Cooper is a rookie, but I thought he was the best prospect in this past draft and see many Pro Bowls in his future. With Brown's return and the additions of Winston and Cooper, Arizona has options up front and much more high-quality talent.
Offensively, Arians wants to throw deep downfield -- and Arizona certainly has the weapons to do so in Larry Fitzgerald and Michael Floyd -- especially if the protection is improved. There will be a lot of vertical routes in this attack, and, with the wealth of attention Fitzgerald is sure to command, Floyd could be in prime position to exploit single coverage with regularity. Arians and Palmer also won't be averse to throwing 50/50 passes, where the receiver is more or less covered, to Floyd in single coverage or even to Fitzgerald when he sees extra attention. Andre Roberts is set up to be one of the premier third receivers in the league and could be used in more quick-hitting routes that allow him to run after the catch. The wild card here is Rob Housler at tight end. Not much of an inline blocker, Housler has a rare height-speed combination. Expect him to often be scorching up the middle of the field on deep seam patterns.
But Arians also wants to run the football. Look back to his days as offensive coordinator in Pittsburgh and you see that he isn't as pass-happy as many tend to think. The Cardinals' rushing attack was poor last season but should be much improved with Rashard Mendenhall and a (hopefully) healthy Ryan Williams. Arians' history implies that this will be a base power running team, but the offseason additions of Winston and Cooper, both of whom move very well for their respective positions, also implies that we will see more mobile zone blocking from Arians' offense. Having such fit and mobile linemen also should allow for more up-tempo play calling, as they are less likely to tire at such a pace.
The improvements on offense also should positively affect the defense, as that unit likely will not have to log nearly as many snaps and won't be thrust into such disadvantageous situations in its own end of the field after critical turnovers. I think this defense is weaker at safety than it was in 2012, but stronger in most other areas on this side of the ball. And Patrick Peterson should only continue to improve into a true shutdown corner.
It is a bit of a concern where the edge rush will come from, but I believe that we will see many more 4-3 looks from this defense. Much like the recent signing of Winston on the other side of the line of scrimmage, Arizona's recent addition of John Abraham could pay off huge as that much-needed situational pass-rusher. The additions of Winston and Abraham this late in the offseason could end up as gigantic short-term additions.
More 4-3 fronts could work very well for Arizona. When the Cardinals go with base 4-3 personnel, their linebackers should be exceptional, with a combination of Daryl Washington (when he returns from at least a four-game suspension), Karlos Dansby and Kevin Minter -- as well as Jasper Brinkley, a true two-down run-stuffing middle linebacker. In front of these excellent linebackers, the Cardinals could have Abraham at the weak defensive end, talented Calais Campbell at the strong end position, Darnell Dockett as the three-technique and Dan Williams as a one-shade on the nose. Dockett is perfectly suited to play a Warren Sapp-like role in such a defense and could be one of the most disruptive defensive linemen in football if consistently asked to play such a style. That front seven, if structured how I suggest, could be among the best in football.
The Cardinals are far from a perfect team and have plenty of question marks heading into this season. But of more concern is the strength of their competition. Although I like the additions Arizona has made this offseason, the NFC is simply too strong for it to make the playoffs. Not only do the Cardinals have to play six games against NFC West teams but I don't believe they're better than the teams they'd be fighting for the final wild-card spot. Still, there are a lot of reasons for optimism this season in Arizona, and this season should be far better than last.
