5 things to watch in 2020 for the Arizona Cardinals

4. With an influx of new personnel, can the defense improve?

There’s no sugar coating it: the 2019 Cardinals defense was awful.

Many fans were calling for the firing of defensive coordinator Vance Joseph when the season came to an end. Instead, GM Steve Keim took the blame, saying he gave Joseph “a gun with no bullets” in 2019. Because of this Keim took it upon himself to load the defense with new faces.

These included:

• Jordan Phillips – a big defensive tackle from Buffalo with the ability to stuff the run and get to the passer.
• Devon Kennard – an outside linebacker who’s solid against the run and can provide some pass rush help (8 sacks last year with Detroit).
• De’Vondre Cambell – an athletic middle linebacker who can help with the coverage of opposing tight ends, which the Cardinals desperately need.
• Dre Kirkpactrick – a veteran cornerback who has had some success in the NFL. He was brought in after the Robert Alford injury and is expected to start opposite of Patrick Peterson.
• Isiah Simmons – a freak of nature athletically and the eighth overall pick in this years draft, the Cardinals will play him at middle linebacker to start the season, then slide him around the field to box safety, nickel corner, and outside linebacker once he’s ready.

Keim also drafted two defensive lineman in the draft, Leki Fotu and Rashard Lawrence, to add much needed depth to the trenches of the defense.

It’ll be difficult to be worse than the Cards were defensively in 2019, but if they can improve to at least average they stand a decent shot at a postseason push. Joseph now has the bullets, lets see if he can fire them accurately.