The jury is still out on the 2018 draft picks but the Arizona Cardinals and general Steve Keim have been receiving praise for them
Over the last five plus years since Steve Keim, the general manager of the Arizona Cardinals, took over the duties of the position, he has had some hits, some misses. There is much discussion over who is considered a miss and a hit.
Sure, there were some big misses but even players who didn’t pan out in Arizona can’t all be attributed to Keim and his staff. Things happen even the best general managers can’t forsee.
Drafted players, all you have to go on is college games. Free agents, you get a look at how they performed with other teams. Until they get to Arizona however, you can only hope they perform the same way.
Many people have give Keim high grades for his 2018 draft class. Even though none have stepped out onto the field for a regular season game yet, the potential is there for years to come. That’s what many fans were looking forward to.
Here are 10 moves that Keim has hit on. There will be those of you that disagree and that’s fine. It is all subjective. If you agree or disagree let us know.
10. Arizona Cardinals next man up mentality
Not every move made after a void has been left on the Cardinals roster has panned out. No one, not even Steve Keim, is perfect. That doesn’t mean he can’t find winners.
Since he became general manager in 2013, Keim has been known to consistently find the next man up. After a huge injury, Keim has had the knack to find not only a competent replacement much of the time but a contributing one.
Maybe no better example of this was when the Cardinals signed Drew Stanton. Now, he signed originally to be a starter, however it was clear early on they had other plans for him.
Stanton was backup to Carson Palmer once he arrived. Stanton replaced Palmer in 2014 during their 11-5 run. Palmer was dealing with back and arm issues.
Stanton came in and lead the team to a 5-3 record in Palmer’s absence. He did it again in 2018 after Palmer was lost for the season. Stanton went 3-1 in his four starts, helping the Cardinals to an 8-8 record.
9. Signing Jared Veldheer
Although he was injured for half of the 2016 season and wasn’t himself for most of the 2017 season, Veldheer was absolutely a great signing for Keim at the time he arrived in 2014. He did a good job protecting Palmer’s blind side.
When he was signed away from the Oakland Raiders, many fans were already high on him. It was a matter of him proving himself in Arizona.
For the first two and a half seasons, he did just that. He was a big reason Palmer was able to have such a great season in 2015 on the way to the NFC Championship Game.
The Cardinals offensive line had been a mess and lacking a big game, especially on that side of the line. He was worth every penny he got on his $35 million contract.
Unfortunately each of the last two seasons ended up with him on injured reserve. He almost left football last training camp. He returned however and played erratically. He was moved over to the right side in favor of D.J. Humphries.
He seemed to play better on the left side though. After he went on injured reserve in November, that was the end of his Cardinals career.
8. Drafting John Brown
Here is another player that was a great find by Keim. From small school Pittsburg (Kansas), Brown was fast, he was flashy when he arrived. There was a reason people called him “Smokey”.
His first real flash of greatness was in November 2014, his rookie season. He scored on a 75-yard touchdown against the Philadelphia Eagles.
In 2015, he had his first, and only, 1,000-yard season. He caught 65 passes, seven of them for touchdowns.
However in 2016, things started going a bit downhill. He too could not escape the injury bug. For awhile, we did not know what his real issue was.
Turned out it was Sickle cell trait. It sapped his energy. That also compounded the issues he was having with his hamstring.
In 2017, he only had 21 receptions, three of them for touchdowns. It became increasingly difficult to count on him from week to week.
Although his time in Arizona ended with a whimper, it was still a move we should be all grateful Keim made. Brown had and still does have good potential. He signed as a free agent with the Baltimore Ravens in the offseason.
7. Not re-signing Blaine Gabbert
Sometimes the best moves are the ones that aren’t made. Gabbert came on the scene last summer during OTA’s. At the time many felt it was an unnecessary move.
As it turns out, Gabbert would be called upon, again thank to the injury to Palmer. Stanton was first called upon but he too was injured, so Gabbert started his first game as a Cardinal back in November of 2017.
Gabbert was just alright. He did make some nice throws but was inconsistent. He was good enough though that one Monday on his weekly radio segment on Arizona Spots 98.7, Keim was praising for his play and hinted they were looking to do something long term with him.
However Gabbert’s performance declined almost immediately after that and any talk of a long term deal was dead. Stanton ended up starting the last two games of the season, both victories.
Once the season ended, they allowed Gabbert to go his own way. The Cardinals had other plans, which we are now aware of.
6. Trading for Carson Palmer
After Keim came in and after the hire of head coach Bruce Arians, the Cardinals started eyeing Palmer. He was coming off a fairly inconsistent season with the Raiders.
Keim and Arians though felt he could be good for the offensive system being put into place. It took about six or seven games into the 2013 season, but Palmer fell right into place nicely.
Palmer lead the Cardinals to a 10-6 record in 2013, 7-2 over his last nine starts. Then he went 6-0 as a starter in 2014 before his second ACL injury.
Palmer had become more than the stop gap quarterback fans and media thought he would be. He was 16-6 as a starter over his first two seasons.
Then in 2015, he started every game. He lead the Cardinals to a 13-3 record, putting his Cardinals career record at 29-9. That is pretty darn good anywhere.
Palmer got his first career playoff win against the Green Bay Packers, leading the Cardinals to the NFC Championship. Unfortunately a broken arm ended his career less than halfway through the 2017 season, his last before retiring in January.
5. Drafting Budda Baker
Once the Cardinals drafted linebacker Haason Reddick in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft, it had been pretty much decided they drafted the best defensive player on the board. As it turns out, he wasn’t the best player the Cardinals drafted.
It’s only been one season but safety Budda Baker is already making a name for himself. He started seven games as a rookie but had seven passes defensed to go with his 58 tackles.
Baker also ended his rookie season with two forced fumbles, a fumble recovery, and a sack. His name seemed to come up a lot.
Baker’s size likely scared some people off but the man can play. He can hit and has a great feel for the ball. Keim made the best pick of the second round of the draft.
Now he will enter his second season with eyes on bigger and better things. Right now he has a good shot at being a full-time starter.
4. Trading for Chandler Jones
Back on March 15, 2016 when news broke the Cardinals had traded guard Jonathan Cooper and a second round pick in 2016 to the New England Patriots for linebacker Chandler Jones, things changed immediately. Now the Cardinals had a pass rush.
In what was considered a relatively weak pass rush despite the roster they already had, picking up Jones immediately resolved a huge need. Cooper was expendable due to his inability to stay healthy and to stay out of Arians’ doghouse.
Jones had 11 sacks in his first season with the Cardinals. In 2017 however, he improved on that, with 17 sacks. Those 17 sacks not only lead the NFL but also was a Cardinals franchise record.
This season with a new defensive scheme thanks to new head coach Steve Wilks, Jones will move up to the defensive line as an edge rusher. Watch out cause Jones may just eclipse those 17 sacks in 2018.
3. Drafting Tyrann Mathieu
He fell to the third round of the 2013 NFL Draft and for good reason. He got into trouble at LSU and did not play football in 2012.
However his talent could not be denied. Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson, also from LSU, vouched for Mathieu. He knew him and knew the Cardinals would not be sorry taking a chance on him.
So, Keim pulled the trigger. Mathieu was practically a model citizen during his time in Arizona, which just ended after the 2017 season.
Also known as the Honey Badger, Mathieu was very involved in the community as well. He was a fan favorite.
However ACL injuries in December 2013 and again two years later in December 2015 really hurt his offseason training and him getting ready for the following season at full strength.
The Cardinals could not afford to keep him at his asking price and he ended up with the Houston Texans in the offseason. It will be strange to see him in a Texans uniform in 2018 but we should all be thankful for the entertainment he provided in Arizona.
2. Drafting Josh Rosen
After avoiding selecting a franchise quarterback of the future for the first several drafts, Keim finally made a great quarterback selection in the 2018 NFL Draft. He traded up to get UCLA quarterback Rosen with the 10th pick of the first round.
It was a bit shocking that he fell that far, but off the field antics were rumored to be an issue with some. There was also a question on arm strength.
However most experts ranked him as the most NFL ready quarterback in this draft. The Cardinals didn’t have to give up the farm to get Rosen.
Sure, he will still have to step out onto the field and prove his worth, however on paper, this has been once great pick for Keim. Now the question will be how soon before we see him in a regular season game?
The Cardinals signed veteran Sam Bradford, who is the current announced starter. However given his injury history, there is a good chance we may see Rosen play in 2018.
1. Drafting David Johnson
The Cardinals running game for the most part has always struggled, at least since the days of moving to the desert in 1988. Sure a few bright spots along the way, but drafting David Johnson in 2015 changed all of that.
Johnson made an immediate impact. In just his second game in the NFL, he scored touchdown running, receiving, and returning a kickoff. He was the first to do that in his first two games as a pro.
His real coming out party was a December game on NBC’s Sunday Night Football against the Philadelphia Eagles. He made as run down the sidelines pushing all out of his way. He had made it.
He lead all running backs in 2016 with 80 receptions. His versatility is what makes him special. Oh, and Keim got him in the third round as well out of Northern Iowa.
Next: The most underpaid Arizona Cardinals
His 2017 ended before it really got started, breaking his wrist in the season opener. Now he is back on the field at 100 percent and looking forward to bowling over opponents in 2018.