May 14, 2013; Tempe, AZ, USA; Arizona Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer (3) and wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald (11) looks on during organized team activities at the Cardinals Training Facility. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

The Arizona Cardinals will compete for a playoff spot in 2013. Their offseason has been a breath of fresh air for Cardinal fans. The excitement really picked up when they acquired Carson Palmer for next to nothing. Without a franchise quarterback prospect staring you dead in the eye, the Cardinals, I believe, made the most impactful QB move of anyone. Yes, you heard me right. I know I am making bold statements, but at least May is the time to make these statements.

Let’s start with the offense. Carson Palmer will fling it for the Redbirds behind the seventh overall pick, Jonathan Cooper. Cooper will naturally slide right into the left guard spot next to Levi Brown. Daryn Colledge will be at right guard and Bobby Massie at right tackle. Massie improved exponentially over the final eight games of 2012. Some say that had he played that well in every game last year, he would have been considered a top-five right tackle in the entire league. The line should be improved overall and without any injuries be stable for Carson Palmer and the revamped Cardinals running back position.

That brings us to Rashard Mendenhall, a very successful NFL running back. He has the championship pedigree and he has done it before. More importantly he has done it before with head coach Bruce Arians in Pittsburgh, so there is familiarity there. Other backs like Stepfan Taylor, Ryan Williams and Andre Ellington will be play key roles and provide a significant impact to the Cardinals backfield.

The wide receiver corps is largely unchanged and spearheaded by all-everything Larry Fitzgerald. I think Fitzgerald is going to have a breakout year (if that’s possible for him). Maybe a resurgent year is more fair to say. Fitzgerald is admittedly coming off the worst year of his career.

In my eyes, it is eerily similar to Reggie Wayne’s worst year of his career back in 2011. After that year, he bounced back under Arians with a rookie QB. Coach Arians knows it is important to get his playmakers the ball, and if he could do it with Wayne, a rookie quarterback and no run game, he will be able to do it with Palmer, Fitzgerald, and a much more talented slew of running backs. Andre Roberts, Michael Floyd and rookie Ryan Swope should also make large impacts in their first year under Arians, as he likes to take shots downfield.

The Cardinals offense and mainly their run game should be much improved. After all, there is only one way to go when you are in the basement. I see a possible top 15 offense here talent wise.

The lone bright spot for the Cardinals in 2012 was their defense and even that has a new coach. The defense was strong all year. No one can blame them when consistent losing finally became too much and a few games ended up getting away. The horrendous offense and their mounting turnovers ultimately wore down a defense that always seemed to be on the field.

The secondary is completely revamped. Gone are Adrian Wilson and Kerry Rhodes. The only experienced returning players are Patrick Peterson and Rashad Johnson. A new but young slew of veteran CBs like Jerraud Powers, Antoine Cason and Javier Arenas have been brought in as well.

NFL safety veterans like Yeremiah Bell, Jonathon Amaya and Curtis Taylor along with a crop of rookies headlined by Tyrann Mathieu will compete for playing time at the safety position. Mathieu is sure to make the most impact immediately of all rookies whether it is at safety or cornerback (in nickel packages).

The Cardinals defensive front seven remains strong anchored by Calais Campbell and Darnell Dockett. The linebacker core was shored up with Kevin Minter, a second-round pick out of LSU and the genius signing/reuniting of Karlos Dansby to the Cardinals.

Do not get me wrong, it will hurt losing Daryl Washington for at least the first four games of 2013, but Dansby will step right in and provide leadership to the young guys. Oh, and Dansby can still play. Last year he surpassed 100 solo tackles for the first time in his career.

Dansby will mitigate the loss of Washington. Book it.

The question mark to me for the defense is coaching. I am not sure what to expect from new defensive coordinator Todd Bowles. The rumor that Darnell Dockett will be used the way he should be sounds promising. The pressure is on Bowles, though. Everyone knows this defense is talented enough to win a championship. If the defense takes a huge step back, the Washington excuse will dwindle away and it will rest squarely on Bowles shoulders.

Of course injuries dictate everything in the NFL. What happens to this division if Colin Kaepernick, Russell Wilson or Marshawn Lynch is sidelined for any amount of time? Will DCs catch up to Kaepernick or Wilson’s games? Tides in the NFL can shift at any snap due to injury. I do not believe the Cardinals are that far away and I will say again, the Arizona Cardinals will compete for a playoff spot in 2013.

Arians and new general manager Steve Keim have been aggressive, but not reckless. They have addressed glaring needs and subtle needs that popped up along the way. I love everything they have done. Their offseason grade is easy; A+.

Dec 29, 2012; San Antonio, TX, USA; Texas Longhorns defensive end Alex Okafor (80) sacks Oregon State Beavers quarterback Cody Vaz (14) during the second half of the Alamo Bowl at the Alamodome. Texas beat Oregon State 31-27. Mandatory Credit: Brendan Maloney-USA TODAY Sports

Alex Okafor has the potential to be a star. So, it’s safe to say that the Cardinals made a great value pick when they took the sack machine in the fourth round.

Okafor, who recorded 12.5 sacks in 2012, should do very well in Arizona. For starters, he has former Longhorn teammate Sam Acho (who was also drafted 103rd overall at defensive end) to help show him the ropes and be a mentor. Okafor said Acho told him that he has an extra room for him if need be which could help out with him settling into the valley and feeling more comfortable at home, which would make him more relaxed on the field.

That couldn’t hurt with him trying to make the transition from college to the pros. Over his college career, he totaled 178 tackles (92 solo), 22 sacks, 38 tackles for loss, 54 quarterback pressures, eight forced fumbles and one fumble recovery. Mack Brown, Texas’ head coach, said that Okafor was an unselfish player who played anywhere they asked him and he never griped.

Because of that, he became a great team leader. Okafor is only 22 years old, so he’s got a few years left to grow and is only going to get bigger and stronger, even after putting up 21 reps at 225 pounds at the NFL Combine.

In an interview, Okafor said he was one of the few that get the opportunity to live his childhood dream and has to capitalize on it. It sounds to me that he’s a self-aware man who knows what he wants, and, as we all know, you can do anything you set your mind to. With his track record, I believe he will back up his words.

Okafor is best as a 4-3 defensive end, and with his stiff upper body and struggles he has changing directions it makes him a poor candidate to make the change to outside linebacker. However, with his college achievements and his willingness to play any and everywhere and his mindset, who am I to say he can’t play standing up as an outside linebacker.

Okafor is almost a spitting image of Acho as a player, except only bigger. With the abundance of players the Arizona Cardinals have at linebacker I’d love to see him do what he does best and strike fear into opponents’ ball-carriers. It’s still too early to say he can’t play outside linebacker but with the need for another play maker on the defensive line, I believe defensive line is the best fit.

The Cardinals will likely run a 3-4, but Okafor could still see some time as a five-technique (a 3-4 defensive end). He has the size and the experience on the defensive line to make an impact, as evidenced by his 18 tackles for loss and 12.5 sacks in 2012. Okafor was a bit inconsistent, but he has showed that he has the potential to take over a game. In the Alamo Bowl against Oregon State, Okafor registered 4.5 sacks.

Bruce Arians and his staff will be the only ones to make that decision, and I’m sure they will him in the packages he fits best in. If they send him after the quarterback a lot, Okafor will be able to make a big impact. Expect Arians to allow Okafor to live up to his full potential, and expect Okafor to help the defensive line right from the get-go.

Apr. 2, 2013; Tempe, AZ, USA; Arizona Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians during a press conference to announce the signing of quarterback Carson Palmer (not pictured) at the Cardinals practice facility. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports.

With a whole new group of players stepping onto the practice field for the Arizona Cardinals, it would be perfectly realistic to expect some bumps in the relationships and development of some players. However, that doesn’t appear to be the case for the Cardinals.

Carson Palmer, Rashard Mendenhall, Karlos Dansby, Jasper Brinkley, Jerraud Powers, Kevin Minter, Tyrann Mathieu, Alex Okafor, Yeremiah Bell, Jonathan Cooper and Stepfan Taylor are just a handful of the players Arizona’s front office has picked up over the course of the offseason. The Cardinals have wasted no time getting started and developing chemistry, and things are going well so far.

According to Kent Somers of azcentral.com, new (surprise) head coach Bruce Arians said, “We got so much done, especially in situational drills. “Two-minute drills. Red zone session today. A third-down session on Tuesday. The kicking game is leaps and bounds ahead of where I thought it would be. We worked on kicking off after a safety today. We’re so far ahead.”

Arians is confident in his team, which is what Cardinals fans want to see. Arians knows what his team needs to do, and he’s making sure the Cardinals are prepared for lots of different situations. Larry Fitzgerald, who wasn’t too happy with how the 2012 season went down, has a new signal-caller to catch passes from in Palmer, and Andre Roberts, who caught 64 passes for 759 yards and hauled in five touchdowns, will also benefit from Palmer.

Fitzgerald, who is ‘thrilled’ to have Palmer in the desert, is poised for a breakout year. The two appear to be getting along just fine, and that is always good. Palmer, who ranked 16th in the NFL in passer rating in 2012, will have fun throwing to Fitzgerald, Roberts and Ryan Swope, which will definitely help the team.

There are some question marks across the board, but the Cardinals appear to be fine at all positions. Arians has been completely satisfied with the performance of the rookies, notably Jonathan Cooper. The offensive line, which has been improved with the additions of Cooper and Earl Watford, has the potential to be very good. If Max Starks signs with the Cardinals, Arizona could start Bobby Massie, Levi Brown, Cooper and Starks, which would make for a great offensive line. The offensive line was a huge problem in 2012, but general manager Steve Keim addressed it.

Even the middle linebacker position appears to be fine, as Keim went out and added some great linebackers. Jasper Brinkley and Karlos Dansby, two underrated players, combined for 233 tackles in 2012, and the two could jump in immediately with the Cardinals likely to run a 3-4 defense. Daryl Washington will eventually work his way into the starting lineup, which will benefit the Cardinals against the pass and against the run. With second-round draft pick Kevin Minter threatening for playing time, the Cardinals are set.

When the Cardinals step onto the field in Week 1 against the St. Louis Rams, it will mark a new era in the desert. While Palmer is 33 years old, he has the potential to take the Cardinals far as soon as this year. The Cardinals entered this offseason with a lengthy to-do list, but Keim quietly signed an abundance of underrated players. Cardinals fans couldn’t have hoped for better things to happen this offseason, and the result should be a very successful season and future.

As we know from watching the Baltimore Ravens win Super Bowl XLVII and watching the San Francisco Giants win two World Series titles, chemistry is a key asset in sports. When a team brings in impactful players at almost every position (leading to a lot of position battles), chemistry is hard to develop. However, it doesn’t look like it’s a problem in Arizona.

In other words, Cardinals fans have multiple reasons to think positively about the upcoming season.