Arizona Cardinals may be in tanking mode for their Week 17 matchup
By Jim Koch
It appears that the Arizona Cardinals may not be doing all that it takes to win when they visit the Atlanta Falcons this weekend.
There are just two games left in this dreadful season for the Arizona Cardinals, and things have finally hit rock-bottom for Kliff Kingsbury’s squad. No one would ever admit it, but it appears that winning may no longer be the number-one priority for the lowly Cardinals.
Cards fans were told earlier this week that backup quarterback Colt McCoy had cleared concussion protocols, and would be ready to go against the Atlanta Falcons this coming weekend. Suddenly, all bets were off on Friday.
After practicing on Thursday, McCoy reportedly experienced more “symptoms” that are related to the head injury he suffered almost two weeks ago. David Blough, a signal-caller who was just signed by Arizona back on December 14th, will be under center versus the Falcons. Anyone feeling confident that the Cardinals can emerge victorious with a passer who’s been with the team for such a short amount of time?
If that wasn’t enough, wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins left practice on Friday with a knee “issue” that suddenly cropped up. Kingsbury said the five-time Pro Bowler will be re-evaluated on Saturday, but there’s a chance that Hopkins could be held out of the clash with Atlanta. In other words, don’t be surprised if the superstar wideout is in street clothes when his teammates take the field this coming Sunday.
Arizona Cardinals owner Michael Bidwill could be urging the team to lose
It’s possible that Cards owner Michael Bidwill may have realized that losing can benefit the franchise a whole lot more than winning at the present time. Suffering defeats to both the Falcons and the San Francisco 49ers over the final two weeks could help the organization obtain a higher pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. In fact, a top-3 selection could lead to Arizona landing either one of two defensive prospects who are projected to be flat-out studs at the professional level.
The Redbirds are in dire need of a top-notch edge-rusher, and the University of Alabama’s Will Anderson Jr. could certainly fill that void. If it’s a dominating defensive tackle that you desire, then the University of Georgia’s Jalen Carter could also be a possibility if “Big Red” goes into “tanking” mode against Atlanta and the Niners.
Related Story. Jalen Carter could make Cardinals D-line a formidable unit. light
It certainly would be nice if Arizona could turn all of the losing they endured this fall into something positive. When you think of it, what good would come out of two more meaningless wins this season? One thing’s for sure, either Anderson Jr. or Carter would be one heck of a consolation prize for this dreadful Cardinals campaign.
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