Division title not happening for 2018 Arizona Cardinals
By Jim Koch
The Los Angeles Rams have improved dramatically, leaving the Arizona Cardinals in their dust with their offseason acquisitions
The Arizona Cardinals may as well wave the white flag. Sure, management believes that the offseason acquisitions they’re making have them on the right track. On track for what would be the first Super Bowl championship of the organization’s existence.
In reality, however, the Arizona front office isn’t playing with the big boys. Winning a Lombardi Trophy sometimes requires taking risks, a formula that general manager Steve Keim doesn’t seem to buy into. It’s a totally different story for a division rival of their’s, who appear to be sparing no expense in their quest to win Super Bowl LIII.
The Los Angeles Rams, in simplest terms, are going for it. While the Cardinals proceed to make mostly mediocre additions to the roster, the Rams are collecting top-notch talent. Les Snead, L.A.’s GM, has been the architect of the impressive moves, adding quality pieces to what was an already-good Rams squad.
After losing talented cornerback Trumaine Johnson in free agency, Los Angeles more than made up for the defection. Snead pulled off two trades, landing not one, but two, Pro Bowl cover guys. Marcus Peters arrived via a trade with the Kansas City Chiefs, while Aqib Talib came over from the Denver Broncos.
If that wasn’t enough, Snead then decided to make a very good Rams defense even better. With one Pro Bowl defensive lineman (Aaron Donald) already in tow, the 47-year old executive went out and signed another. Ndamukong Suh was inked to a one-year, $14 million contract, giving the team one of the best defensive tackle combinations in the NFL.
Now that the defense was improved, it was time for Los Angeles to give the offensive side of the ball some love. Brandin Cooks was acquired from the New England Patriots, giving quarterback Jared Goff an explosive wide receiver to throw to. The youthful triumvirate of Goff, Cooks and running back Todd Gurley is pretty darn impressive, to say the least.
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Cards’ followers have to be realistic. The Rams were a much better team than Arizona last year, and nothing has changed in that regard. In fact, the distance between the two squads has gotten even wider.