Decisions at running back spot looming for Arizona Cardinals

The surprising acquisition of Kenyan Drake has created a logjam of talent at the running back position for the Arizona Cardinals

This past Monday, the Arizona Cardinals made what could be considered a somewhat surprising move. Dealing with a plethora of injuries at the running back position, Steve Keim orchestrated a trade for the Miami Dolphins Kenyan Drake. Don’t look now, but it seems as if the Cards general manager may have created a controversy in the backfield with the unexpected acquisition.

Spectacular would be an excellent word to describe Drake’s Arizona debut on Halloween night. The former third-round pick of the Dolphins sliced through the vaunted San Francisco 49ers defense like a knife cutting through hot butter. Drake’s tremendous skills were obviously being wasted in South Florida, by a Miami club that is the joke of the NFL at the moment.

The 6’1, 211 pounder appears to be an outstanding fit for Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury‘s “Air Raid” offense. Drake totaled 110 rushing yards and a touchdown on just 15 carries during the matchup with the 49ers. The 25-year also showed great hands by hauling in four of quarterback Kyler Murray‘s passes for an additional 52 yards.

Drake’s superb outing has created a dilemma for Kingsbury and his offensive staff. The Cards top two ball-carriers, David Johnson and Chase Edmonds, will be returning from injury within the next couple of weeks. How will the touches be distributed between those three extremely talented individuals going forward?

Arizona also signed a couple of other backs last week when both Johnson and D.J. Foster were initially sidelined. Veterans Alfred Morris and Zach Zenner were both added on October 23rd to help pick up the slack. It stands to reason Zenner will be released when Johnson and Edmonds are healthy enough to return.  Morris was released Friday afternoon.

Based on what he accomplished on Thursday night, one would have to believe that the Cardinals would want Drake on the field as much as possible. Johnson has shown flashes of brilliance this season, but there have also been times when he looks as if he’s running in cement. Edmonds, on the other hand, seemed to be emerging as a valuable weapon before he pulled his hamstring last Sunday versus the New Orleans Saints.

It will be interesting to see how Kingsbury juggles the three-headed monster he now has at his disposal. The squad has a logjam of talent in the backfield that other organizations in the league could only dream of. Let’s see if the Cards can use the wealth of runners they currently have to their advantage during the last seven contests of 2019.