Arizona Cardinals turn focus to cornerback position

Arizona Cardinals’ GM Steve Keim never fails to improve the roster and his attention has now turned to depth at cornerback

That time of the offseason has arrived. The time when Arizona Cardinals general manager Steve Keim becomes a scavenger, rummaging through the trash cans of NFL teams, searching for discarded players.

Keim has made a science out of bringing in players that other franchises have decided are of no use to them anymore. John Abraham, Eric Winston, Karlos Dansby, Antonio Cromartie, Larry Foote, Chris Johnson and Dwight Freeney are part of a very impressive list of cast-offs that were revived in the desert.

Many Cards’ fans, while impressed with the offseason thus far, have clamored for reinforcements at the cornerback position. Justin Bethel, the current starter opposite Patrick Peterson, has been too inconsistent to have faith in.

Up until now free agency had come and went with nary a move at the position. There were good ones available including Josh Norman, Janoris Jenkins, Sean Smith and Prince Amukamara. While there was talk of Jerraud Powers returning to the nest, he eventually left for the Baltimore Ravens.

The Cards did add two corners in the draft, third-rounder Brandon Williams and sixth-rounder Harlan Miller. The thing with rookies though is that you never really know what you have until you see them perform in games that matter.

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With a need for veteran depth, and training camp beginning next week, Keim has added to the roster Mike Jenkins, a 31-year old cornerback who played for Tampa Bay last season.

The 5’10, 197 pound Jenkins is a former first-round draft pick of the Dallas Cowboys. While he did appear in the Pro Bowl following the 2009 season there are questions about how how much gas he has left in the tank. The fact is he’s a low-risk investment and there’s no question he brings the experience the Cardinals desired.

More exciting are reports that former San Francisco 49ers and Washington Redskins veteran Chris Culliver is scheduled to visit team facilities next week. He’s recovering from a knee injury but if he can get healthy, even if just for part of the season, he instantly becomes the team’s second most talented corner behind Peterson. Pairing the two would give the Cards a lethal duo at one of the most important positions on the field and would perhaps be the final piece to a Super Bowl-caliber defense.

So after a couple of months of inactivity the giant is awake. Keim is back to work, looking over all available free agents, trying to find hidden gems who’d be perfect fits for the organization.

Jenkins is a good start. It’s exciting to think about who could be next.

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