Cardinals are keeping special teams intact thus far in 2022

Special teams coordinator Jeff Rodgers has to be thrilled with what the Arizona Cardinals front office has done this offseason.

The first week of free agency has come and gone, and the Arizona Cardinals front office has received mixed grades on the work it has done thus far.

A pair of moves orchestrated by Steve Keim could arguably earn the Cards general manager an A-plus. Zach Ertz and James Conner, two of the offense’s main components, were welcomed back with open arms by the club and its fans.

The rest of the players who inked deals with Arizona, while solid performers, would not be referred to as “sexy” signings. There is one member of Kliff Kingsbury‘s coaching staff, however, who would beg to differ.

Jeff Rodgers, the Cardinals special teams coordinator, has to be thrilled with what Keim and his cohorts have accomplished this offseason. No less than four of the free agents who agreed to new contracts with the Redbirds in the past week play important roles for the unit that Rodgers presides over.

Arizona Cardinals have retained four important special teams contributors 

On the first day of the NFL’s “legal tampering” period, the Cards inked one of the league’s premier wedge-busters to a four-year deal. Dennis Gardeck, who moonlights as a second-string outside linebacker, will be paid $12 million over the next three seasons.

Three days later, Arizona retained two more vital members of the special teams group. Andy Lee, a 39-year-old punter who came to the desert back in 2017, will stick around for at least another campaign. Long-snapper Aaron Brewer also signed a one-year deal on the very same day.

Last Friday, special teams ace Ezekiel Turner agreed to a one-year contract that will keep him with “Big Red” in 2022. The 25-year-old has been an essential part of Rodgers’ crew since he joined the organization as an undrafted free agent four years ago.

Any NFL team with Super Bowl aspirations knows that it’s difficult to win a championship without a talented contingent of special teamers. Based on what they did last week, it appears that the Cardinals hierarchy wholeheartedly agrees with that opinion.