The Cardinals future

[Scooby-Doo]

Is it too soon to talk about the Cardinals future. I realize the playoffs aren't out of the question but it's not likely. Looking toward next year, I think this team is going to be a beast. This team seems to have grasped Arians offense. I think there going to be pretty dang solid next year. I'm very excited about their future.

 

[sunsguns]

Cards 8-5 and have gone 5-1 over their last 6 games. Defense is flat dominating and Carson Palmer has been playing GREAT the 2nd half of this season. Arizona's future looks VERY BRIGHT! SHOOT! They could finish 11-5 this season & still not make the playoffs.....TOUGH DIVISION !

 

[Scorpion14]

I believe next season the Niners and Seahawks will have to open up their pocketbooks for their two quarterbacks. Right now both teams are getting bargains

 

[Jonas_steven]

You all make great points. I was just thinking about the same thing today. I am going to hang onto our playoff hopes for as long as possible but the scenario is getting pretty slim. If Keim can bring in a bunch of outcasts and nearly have this team make the playoffs, just imagine what he could do in 2-3 years! I am highly optimistic of this team going forward! This is the first time in a long time that I have felt that we could be developing a year in and year out playoff team in the valley!

 

[Davis_Mike]

I believe next season the Niners and Seahawks will have to open up their pocketbooks for their two quarterbacks. Right now both teams are getting bargains

The Niners will but the Seahawks have another season before they have to pay Wilson. You can't negotiate a new contract till after season 3.

While this years results have been surprising & Keim made some great moves, 2014 is a mystery. Their are far too many questions in the future to get overly excited about where this team is heading. And a few bad decisions in the offseason could put the Cards right back into their perpetual dormant sub .500 state they have been in since Warner retired.

Here is a list of issues the Cards need to address in the offseason that will dictate their future success:

-Restructuring Fitz's contract (This is problem #1)

-Getting Peterson signed to a new contract

-Deciding if Palmer is more than a 2 year stopgap. The Cards have him under team control below market value through 2015 with a $10 mil option for 2015. While the decision to keep him is an easy decision for 2014, the decision on whether to keep him beyond 2014 needs to be made this offseason. What I mean by that is that they need to have a plan in place for after Palmer in the near term & long term. Do they draft a QB in the early rounds to groom behind Palmer now or wait a year? Do they think Palmer can play at his current level beyond 2015? These questions need to be answered this offseason & if they guess wrong, it could put the Cards right back in the position we have been in for the last few seasons.

-The LT situation. While Sowell has played well & MUCH better than Mr Turnstile, there is still room for an upgrade there. Sowell is still young(24) & could improve with a full offseason with the Cards. Do the Cards continue forward with Sowell as the answer or spend the first 2014 pick on a LT?

-Resigning Karlos Dansby. We all know he is about the $$$. Will he take less money for a 2-3 year contract to stay here or will he bolt for the cash again? Overpaying him for a great year would hurt the Cardinals more than it would help to have him on the team. If you let him go, can Minter/Brinkly contribute enough to fill the void?

-The Eric Winston/Bobbie Massie RT situation. Winston has played well enough to deserve a new contract. But has Massie improved enough this season to let Winston go & save the cap money to help fill other needs?

-Can Ellington handle 20+ carries a game? Do the Cards need to bring back Mendenhall if he will come back cheap, go with the Ellington/Taylor combo, sign another veteran RB on the cheap, or draft a RB to compliment him?

-RG situation. With Cooper back for 2014, do the Cardinals go back to the original plan for 2013 & move Colledge to the RG. Or do they cut him to save a little money? And if you cut him, is Fanaika playing well enough to keep the starting RG position?

-Resigning some of the guys who signed 1 year deals this season. I already mentioned Dansby, Winston, & Mendenhall, but guys like Bell, Shaughnessy, Rucker, & Ta'amu have all played well. Bell & Rucker could be had on cheap 1 year deals, but Shaughnessy will be looking for a longer deal this offseason. And with Acho, Alexander, & Okafor back, do they need him?


As I listed, there are a lot of tough decisions that Keim will have to make again this offseason. He made a lot of good decisions in the 2013 offseason that were unpopular at the time. He will have to make those same type of decisions correctly again if the Cardinals are to continue winning for the long term.

 

[JahiiCarson_SqodGeneral]

There are alot of good runningbacks in the draft. Let Mendenhall go grab a runningback in the 2nd or 3rd round. Then obviously keep Ellington.

 

[JahiiCarson_SqodGeneral]

The future is bright if we dont overpay Larry.

 

[CakesW]

Running back situation for the Cardinals is actually one of the better ones on the Roster. Stepfan Taylor is a very talented RB... if they let Mendenhall walk, this guy would step in and be even better.

Another Draft like the 2013 one, would be amazing in the development of the Cardinals.

 

[JahiiCarson_SqodGeneral]

Running back situation for the Cardinals is actually one of the better ones on the Roster. Stepfan Taylor is a very talented RB... if they let Mendenhall walk, this guy would step in and be even better.

Another Draft like the 2013 one, would be amazing in the development of the Cardinals.

Stepfan can be very good but is most likely a 3rd rb, Ellington as our 2nd rb/3rd down/ homerun back, and one from this great rb class. With cooper back we are going to want to run it down opponets throats next year.

 

[arvi_mu]

Stepfan can be very good but is most likely a 3rd rb, Ellington as our 2nd rb/3rd down/ homerun back, and one from this great rb class. With cooper back we are going to want to run it down opponets throats next year.

Running backs are a dime a dozen in my opinion. There are very few truly elite RBs that are difference makers. Most are products of a great OL. Adrian Peterson is basically the only one in the NFL right now if you ask me. Jones Drew is close. But guys like Foster, Charles, Gore, McCoy and even Lynch are products of their OLs. Don't get me wrong. You have to have talent at the position, but the range of talent between those guys and types like Ellington, Taylor, Bernard, Ivory, Murray, and most all of the other RBs in the league is small.

I think a first round RB more times than not is a wasted pick. Can anybody name even 3 RBs taken in the first round over the last few years that was worth it. Adrian Peterson and Tomlinson are the only ones I can think of. Shaun Alexander would be in the discussion as well as Jamal Lewis. Now how many weren't worthy of the pick? Cedric Benson, Ronnie Brown, Cadillac Williams, Beanie Wells, Donald Brown, Trent Richardson, Ron Dayne, Willis McGahee, Kevin Jones, and on and on.

 

[JahiiCarson_SqodGeneral]

I think Carey and Sankey will be good, Sankey reminds me of Ray Rice, Marion Grice is a perfect fit in New England lots of talented and versatile backs in this draft. Melvin Gordon.

 

[JahiiCarson_SqodGeneral]

I dont wanna take a rb in 1st im thinking 3rd and draft Sankey.

 

[Scooby-Doo]

A running back in the first 4 rounds would be a wasted pick IMO. Beef up the o-line and d-line. Considering how undependable Housler has been, I would love to see Eric Ebron drop to the Cards. I doubt Clinton-Dix would be available when the Cards pick, but how good would he look at Safety with Honey Badger?

 

[JahiiCarson_SqodGeneral]

This rb class is just so good though I feel like you gotta grab one! Sankey is a beast he's identical to Ray Rice!

 

[JahiiCarson_SqodGeneral]

But yea get some d linemen in the lower middle rounds. I don't think it needs to be "beefed up" I think we need to set it up for the future with Dockett aging. And Calais getting older. Another cornerback would be nice because Powers is really the only liability on defense. But the rb class is so stacked.

 

[JahiiCarson_SqodGeneral]

A running back in the first 4 rounds would be a wasted pick IMO. Beef up the o-line and d-line. Considering how undependable Housler has been, I would love to see Eric Ebron drop to the Cards. I doubt Clinton-Dix would be available when the Cards pick, but how good would he look at Safety with Honey Badger?

I think Tony is going to develop into a good fucking safety but yea secondary help is needed especially at Powers spot....... I mean if Carl Bradford leaves early I would like that pick up.

 

[JahiiCarson_SqodGeneral]

I wouldn't mind taking a chance at a qb in later rounds taking a shot at a James Franklin or Keith Price......... Get the stuff we need though first OT, and I would say a cornerback? I mean I don't know haha. I want to run the ball dominately I know Mendenhall is average and Ellington was a steal as a 3rd round pick, BA said he gains 10 more pounds he's Daron Sproles.

 

[Jonas_steven]

A running back in the first 4 rounds would be a wasted pick IMO. Beef up the o-line and d-line. Considering how undependable Housler has been, I would love to see Eric Ebron drop to the Cards. I doubt Clinton-Dix would be available when the Cards pick, but how good would he look at Safety with Honey Badger?

Clinton-Dix is projected to go first round , maybe early second at latest. That would be a phenomenal pick up though. There are a ton of good offensive linemen in this draft. I would be happy with Cyrus kouandijo or that one kid from the smaller school. Either way, our o-line will be revamped come next season.

 

[johnson]

Picking a RB in the first round at this point in the NFL just kind of screams stupid, unless you truly have the next Adrian Peterson sitting there. Beanie Wells and Ryan Williams (honestly can't remember when he was drafted, but it was too high) should be all the recent lessons they need there.

 

[arvi_mu]

I wouldn't mind taking a chance at a qb in later rounds taking a shot at a James Franklin or Keith Price......... Get the stuff we need though first OT, and I would say a cornerback? I mean I don't know haha. I want to run the ball dominately I know Mendenhall is average and Ellington was a steal as a 3rd round pick, BA said he gains 10 more pounds he's Daron Sproles.

3rd round? Wasn't Ellington a 6th or 7th round pick?