Back with a venegeance
Its been a while folks. Life truly does get in the way sometimes but I'm back at the best possible time. And by best I mean the offseason when absolutely nothing of note is going down. I am going to try something out here. My take on all the big stories of the offseason. I know most of these will not be exactly topical but this blog is for me just as much as it is for you. This will be a series of stories, todays feature is the Cardinals.
1. Transition in the desert:
As a homer and known biased Cardinals fan, I will begin with what I perceive to be the biggest story of the offseason. The cards cleaned house after a disastrous season that saw the team crumble in all facets of the game. The offence resembled that of a drunk high school coaches "pro style scheme" fever dream. David Johnson could not have been used more incorrectly as he was shoved up the middle time and time again. The offensive line was a certified disaster. The starting lineup at the end of the year couldn't stop an Alabama pass rush, let alone an NFL one. Josh Rosen had no real help around him and crumbled as a result. Management saw it fit to clean house after one horrendous year.
Enter Kliff Kingsbury. The college coach known for his work with successful quarterbacks such as Patrick Mahomes (ever heard of him). Though Kingsbury struggled to win in college (his record was just below .500) his offences were among the best in the game. This hiring and the simultaneous decision of Kyler Murray to enter the NFL draft set off a chain of events that shook the NFL universe. Kingsbury's fanboyship of Murray had been present since his days in the college ranks. The Hiesman trophy winner is no slouch himself putting up video game numbers with his arm and feet. Though his size scared some teams off, his arm talent, history of winning and incredible speed made him the perfect fit for Kinsbury's Air Raid offence.
Management wants to give Kliff everything he needs to succeed. This means allowing him to shape the team in his own image. The decision was made to trade off Rosen for a second round pick. An unprecedented move considering his high draft status last year. The team then selected Murray number one overall and proceeded to build up the team around him. They selected a number of weapons including speedster Andy Isabella, physical force Hakeem Butler and tech savvy Keesean Johnson. These picks coupled with incredible value picks Byron Murphy (CB), Zach Allen (DE) and Dieonte Thompson (S) have the team poised to turnover a new leaf. This incredible draft coupled with the return of Larry Fitzgerald, the expected renaissance of David Johnson and a healthy offensive line has the offence poised for a large rebound.
Defensively things have improved with the pickup of former Broncos coach Vance Joesph. Joesph plans to change the defence back to a 3-4 which has always suited personnel better. The acquisition of Jordan Hicks and the shifting of Hassan Reddick back to ILB should help the team quell its run stop issues. The pass rush should be formidable with the incredibly underrated Chandler Jones and the ageless wonder Terrell Suggs coming off the edge. The secondary may struggle with the unfortunate suspension of Patrick Peterson for 6 games. Though I expect the combination of Budda Baker and DJ Swearinger will improve the play on the back end. The key for the defence in the early going will be getting immediate production out of Byron Murphy and steady play out of expensive free agent Robert Alford. If the corners can at least be decent then I really like the look of a defence that was underrated last year.
The team may not be ready for playoff contention but there is serious potential for some fireworks. Us fans will take anything over the horror show snooze fest we witnessed last year.
1. Transition in the desert:
As a homer and known biased Cardinals fan, I will begin with what I perceive to be the biggest story of the offseason. The cards cleaned house after a disastrous season that saw the team crumble in all facets of the game. The offence resembled that of a drunk high school coaches "pro style scheme" fever dream. David Johnson could not have been used more incorrectly as he was shoved up the middle time and time again. The offensive line was a certified disaster. The starting lineup at the end of the year couldn't stop an Alabama pass rush, let alone an NFL one. Josh Rosen had no real help around him and crumbled as a result. Management saw it fit to clean house after one horrendous year.
Enter Kliff Kingsbury. The college coach known for his work with successful quarterbacks such as Patrick Mahomes (ever heard of him). Though Kingsbury struggled to win in college (his record was just below .500) his offences were among the best in the game. This hiring and the simultaneous decision of Kyler Murray to enter the NFL draft set off a chain of events that shook the NFL universe. Kingsbury's fanboyship of Murray had been present since his days in the college ranks. The Hiesman trophy winner is no slouch himself putting up video game numbers with his arm and feet. Though his size scared some teams off, his arm talent, history of winning and incredible speed made him the perfect fit for Kinsbury's Air Raid offence.
Management wants to give Kliff everything he needs to succeed. This means allowing him to shape the team in his own image. The decision was made to trade off Rosen for a second round pick. An unprecedented move considering his high draft status last year. The team then selected Murray number one overall and proceeded to build up the team around him. They selected a number of weapons including speedster Andy Isabella, physical force Hakeem Butler and tech savvy Keesean Johnson. These picks coupled with incredible value picks Byron Murphy (CB), Zach Allen (DE) and Dieonte Thompson (S) have the team poised to turnover a new leaf. This incredible draft coupled with the return of Larry Fitzgerald, the expected renaissance of David Johnson and a healthy offensive line has the offence poised for a large rebound.
Defensively things have improved with the pickup of former Broncos coach Vance Joesph. Joesph plans to change the defence back to a 3-4 which has always suited personnel better. The acquisition of Jordan Hicks and the shifting of Hassan Reddick back to ILB should help the team quell its run stop issues. The pass rush should be formidable with the incredibly underrated Chandler Jones and the ageless wonder Terrell Suggs coming off the edge. The secondary may struggle with the unfortunate suspension of Patrick Peterson for 6 games. Though I expect the combination of Budda Baker and DJ Swearinger will improve the play on the back end. The key for the defence in the early going will be getting immediate production out of Byron Murphy and steady play out of expensive free agent Robert Alford. If the corners can at least be decent then I really like the look of a defence that was underrated last year.
The team may not be ready for playoff contention but there is serious potential for some fireworks. Us fans will take anything over the horror show snooze fest we witnessed last year.
Comments
Post a Comment