Cardinals Making Progress, But Not There Yet
Team-By-Team Offseason Roundup
Arizona Cardinals
Coaching Change
Fired: Dennis Green
Hired: Ken Whisenhunt
Players Released:
None
Free Agents Lost:
Leonard Davis, T/G
Fred Wakefield, DE
John Navarre, QB
Alex Stepanovich, C
Chris Liwienski, G
David Macklin, CB
Free Agents Re-Signed:
Marcel Shipp, RB
Hanik Milligan, S
Monty Beisel, LB
Chris Cooper, DL
Free Agents Added:
Al Johnson, C
Terrence Holt, S
Rod Hood, CB
Sean Morey, WR
Terrelle Smith, FB
Mike Gandy, T/G
Rodney Bailey, DE
Joe Tafoya, DT
Ralph Brown, CB
Qasim Mitchell, OL
Draft:
Rd. 1 (5th overall)... Levi Brown, T, Penn State
2 (33) Alan Branch, DT, Michigan
3 (69) Buster Davis, LB, Florida State
5 (142) Steve Breaston, WR, Michigan
7 (215) Ben Patrick, TE, Delaware
Analysis:
Is this finally the year?
For several years, picking the Cardinals to turn things around has been the trendy thing to do. They've had the offensive playmakers in place. They've had a defensive standout here and there. They brought in a proven winner of a coach in Dennis Green, then a proven offensive centerpiece of a running back in Edgerrin James. And still, it didn't work.
Now Green is gone and former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt has taken over. The Cardinals have a would-be franchise quarterback, in Matt Leinart, entering his first full season as an NFL starter. Are they finally ready to win?
Yes and no.
They're headed in the right direction, for sure. Whisenhunt is highly regarded around the league, and Leinart certainly appears to be the longterm solution at quarterback. He has talented players around him on offense and the Cardinals believe they got a cornerstone offensive tackle with the fifth overall choice in the draft, Levi Brown. They had him rated ahead of Wisconsin's Joe Thomas, who went third to the Cleveland Browns, as the top tackle available. Never mind that no one else in the league seemed to agree with that assessment, or that the Cardinals probably could have traded down at least a half-dozen spots and still gotten Brown. No one disputes that they got a solid offensive tackle prospect.
The bottom line is that Leinart hasn't completed a full season as a starter, and there are some some growing pains still to endure there. The Cardinals helped the defense in the second and third rounds of the draft by getting Michigan tackle Alan Branch and Florida State linebacker Buster Davis. But this remains a work in progress, and Whisenhunt and Leinart probably need a season together before the Cardinals become a bona fide threat.
By Mark Maske |
May 3, 2007; 1:55 PM ET
| Category:
Cardinals
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Posted by: BoltsFan | May 3, 2007 2:59 PM
You gonna do a team at a time, in alphabetical order?
Posted by: Gonzo, MD | May 3, 2007 3:28 PM
That's how it's been in the past, Gonzo...kinda takes up the dead space between now and training camp...
Posted by: PSF | May 3, 2007 3:58 PM
i've been a closet 'zona fan since having fitz on my fantasy team 2 years running. i think its kinda dumb but still kinda admirable in a way the way they drafted brown w/out trading down; shows they're focused and know what they want, damn what anyone else says. but they coulda really helped themselves out by trading down even just a few spots, that way taking brown AND maybe staley, grubbs, etc.
anyone else think branch is gonna prove everyone wrong and become a monster?
Posted by: pack4life | May 3, 2007 5:30 PM
The comments to this entry are closed.
It's offensive lines like Arizona and Houston that make me understand why QB's are tested at the combine for throwing while on their knees.
David Carr got ruined by the Texans O-Line; hopefully Matt Leinart does not suffer the same fate.