Cardinals may finally get some payback from Zaven Collins

The rookie linebacker may get a golden opportunity on Sunday to reward the Arizona Cardinals for drafting him back in April.

Immediately after being selected in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft, Zaven Collins was told by the Arizona Cardinals that he’d be a starter. The grand plan was to pair the rookie with Isaiah Simmons at the inside linebacker spots, but the Cards were obviously way off in their pre-draft evaluation of Collins.

When the season got underway, veteran Jordan Hicks was back in the starting lineup and Collins was relegated to mostly special teams duty. But now, due to unforeseen circumstances, the 22-year old may finally be given a chance to have a meaningful impact on the Cardinals‘ defense.

This coming Sunday, the Cards will be short a couple of linebackers when they take on the Dallas Cowboys in a Week 17 matchup. If Collins was ever going to get an opportunity to show Arizona what he can do, this weekend’s meeting with “America’s Team” could be it.

Zaven Collins could be pressed into action this week for the Arizona Cardinals

All signs are pointing to the Cardinals being without Markus Golden and Devon Kennard for their crucial clash with the Cowboys. Both players were placed on the COVID-19 list over the past few days, absences that come as no surprise with the NFL’s recent spike in coronavirus cases. While Kennard has already been ruled out against Dallas, there remains a chance that Golden could still be cleared to play by Sunday.

Collins would be making a position change if the Cards do elect to employ him as a replacement for Golden and Kennard. The 6-foot-5, 260-pound Collins would be moving from the inside post to an edge-rushing assignment on the outside. Pressuring Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott will not seem entirely foreign to the youngster, who managed to rack up 7.5 sacks during his time at the University of Tulsa.

In 15 appearances (five starts) for Arizona this fall, Collins has recorded a measly 22 tackles. Certainly not the level of production that the organization expected when they used the draft’s16th-overall selection on the Oklahoma native.

The Cardinals would love to get something back on the investment they made on Collins back in April. This week’s critical contest against Dallas would be as good a time as any to start receiving some payback from the first-year player.