Dre Kirkpatrick can fix Arizona Cardinals cornerback problem
By Jim Koch
The ninth-year veteran has the potential to be an excellent remedy for the Arizona Cardinals number-two cornerback quandary
It can’t be said that the Arizona Cardinals aren’t trying. In response to the latest season-ending injury to Robert Alford, the club has added two free agent cornerbacks to the roster. Despite the effort by the front office, neither Ken Crawley or B.W. Webb are generating a great deal of enthusiasm on the Cards message boards since they joined the team this past week.
One player who could potentially get the “Red Sea” excited is veteran cover guy Dre Kirkpatrick. The longtime member of the Cincinnati Bengals was released by that franchise this past March, in what was essentially viewed as a cost-cutting move. Parting ways with Kirkpatrick saved the Bengals $8.2 million against the salary cap, and the 30-year old has remained unemployed ever since.
Kirkpatrick’s NFL resume is much more impressive than the ones that Crawley and Webb have put together. In 99 career games (67 starts), the Alabama native has racked up 302 tackles,10 interceptions and 65 passes defensed for Cincinnati. At 6’2,190 pounds, Kirkpatrick also has the size and length that Arizona has always preferred for their corners.
Last fall, Kirkpatrick suffered a hyperextended knee in a week six matchup with the Baltimore Ravens. The former first-round draft pick was placed on the injured-reserve list, costing him the final 10 matchups of the campaign. In six appearances before the incident, Kirkpatrick totaled 33 tackles, four pass breakups and a sack for the Bengals.
A cornerback combination of Patrick Peterson and Kirkpatrick is an intriguing scenario. At the moment, 22-year old Byron Murphy would be the starter opposite Peterson in the Cardinals secondary. The slot position is a much better fit for last year’s second-round selection, however.
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The financial part of the equation could be an issue. Arizona has very little salary-cap space to work with at the present time. Whether Kirkpatrick would accept a one-year “prove-it” contract to play for the Cards is a question that will need to be answered.