Arizona Cardinals general manager Steve Keim has assembled a defensive unit that could potentially be one of the NFL’s worst.
If the Arizona Cardinals and their fans were surprised by what transpired this past Sunday, they shouldn’t have been. When you think about it logically, there was no way that the Cards were going to compete against a vaunted Kansas City Chiefs passing attack with Byron Murphy Jr. and Marco Wilson serving as the starting cornerbacks.
Attempting to cover a stud tight end like Travis Kelce with an overmatched “star” backer like Isaiah Simmons also proved to be an exercise in futility. Actually, the subpar cover guys that Arizona currently employs is just one of the problems on defense that general manager Steve Keim refused to address during the offseason.
The second-rate group of pass-rushers that the front office elected to roll with is another major issue that Keim and company inexplicably chose to ignore. For the past several months, the Cardinals message boards have pleaded with the team to reinforce the defense. Keim apparently had a plan, however, to put faith in several of his draft picks that will likely never find success at the NFL level.
Many Arizona Cardinals draft selections are failing to get it done in the NFL.
With each passing day, inside linebacker Zaven Collins is looking more and more like a first-round bust. Simmons, another one of the Cards’ opening-round choices, is also struggling to live up to the eighth-overall draft status that was heaped upon the youngster back in 2020.
There’s also Arizona’s nose tackle position, where the less-than-spectacular combination of Rashard Lawrence and Leki Fotu are doing little more than taking up space these days. Add to all of that the uninspiring play of Murphy Jr. and Wilson at corner, and you can see why Kansas City’s offense had their way with the group during the 44-21 blowout in week 1.
What’s really perplexing about the situation is that it really didn’t have to be this bad. There were players on the free-agent market who could’ve helped. In fact, there still are.
Apologies all around if this is starting to sound like a broken record, but wouldn’t veterans like Joe Haden, Chris Harris, Janoris Jenkins, Kevin King or even Robert Alford be better than what the Redbirds currently have at cornerback? It’s also hard to fathom how Jason-Pierre Paul couldn’t provide a better pass-rush than the incapable contingent of outside linebackers that the Cardinals are trotting out there at the present time.
Then there’s Ndamukong Suh, a 35-year old who would certainly be an upgrade over both Lawrence and Fotu. A run-stuffer such as Brandon Williams or Linval Joseph would also look fantastic in the middle of the Cards defensive line.
According to a report, “Big Red” is expected to have J.J. Watt back in the mix next week. And cover guys such as Antonio Hamilton and Trayvon Mullen will eventually return to the playing field as well. Even so, Watt is now 33-years old and injury-prone, and Hamilton and Mullen are really nothing to get excited about.
Even the most optimistic Arizona fans should’ve known that defensive coordinator Vance Joseph didn’t have the horses to compete. How a 10th-year GM like Keim didn’t know is anybody’s guess.