Arizona Cardinals’ Neglect of Cornerback Position Alarming
By Jim Koch
In their ongoing quest to find a number-two cornerback, the Arizona Cardinals inexplicably ignored the 2017 free agent class
The Arizona Cardinals seem to be making it harder than it needs to be. When your number one cornerback is Patrick Peterson, your number two corner doesn’t have to be a stud. But he does need to be an improvement over the likes of Justin Bethel and Brandon Williams.
The club has proclaimed it’s faith in both Bethel and Williams in the recent past. But this week, Arizona announced that Bethel has agreed to a pay cut. That would have to be the farthest thing from a vote of confidence for the 26-year old, who they had extended in December of 2015.
Williams had a whole one season of experience at the position before he was drafted in the third round last year. It was a terrible reach by general manager Steve Keim, and the pick has bust written all over it.
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Some will point to the pair’s decent showing against the Los Angeles Rams in the 2016 regular-season finale as hope for the future. But playing well against the Rams’ inept Jared Goff is nothing to get excited about.
This year’s free agent class offered some help. Admittedly, cornerbacks like A.J.Bouye, Stephon Gilmore, Dre Kirkpatrick and Logan Ryan were probably out of their price range. Although, if an organization wants a player bad enough, there are ways to circumvent the salary cap.
But mortgaging a bit of the future aside, there were some second-tier options. Prince Amukamara, Brandon Carr, Captain Munnerlyn and Davon House all could’ve fit in nicely. But all were ignored and have since found new homes.
With the free agent choices now virtually depleted, Keim will now need to look to April’s draft. Fortunately, experts feel there’s a deep pool of cornerbacks available this year. Even if the Cards didn’t take one with the 13th overall pick, they may still find quality in the second round.
The problem with rookies is that they’re unknown commodities. With the 2017 Cardinals built to win this season, would they trust a first-year player at such an important position?
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Perhaps Keim hasn’t showed his hand yet. Maybe he still has a trick up his sleeve. Cards’ fans can only hope that he does.