The Arizona Cardinals entered the season with seven receivers on their 53-man roster. Between the Marvin Harrison Jr. trade to the Houston Texans and season-ending injuries to both Kendrick Bourne and Jalen Brooks, that depth has quickly faded.
For context, the Cardinals are now relying on receiver Simi Fehoko -- largely known for his special teams contributions -- as the WR2 alongside Michael Wilson.
Even Wilson is dealing with injuries himself, suffering two broken ribs in their Week 8 comeback win over the Dallas Cowboys. Wilson was limited in practice on Thursday, according to Darren Urban of azcardinals.com. He managed to produce against Dallas despite the injury, finishing with a season-high 111 yards and a touchdown, bringing in 8 of 15 targets.
If Wilson can toughen it out and play in Week 9 against the Seattle Seahawks, the Cardinals desperately need him to play the part of a legitimate WR1 in this offense. That's easier said than done going from the Cowboys' defense to the Seahawks, but Wilson did have a strong connection established with Gardner Minshew II after Mike LaFleur's quarterback change.
The swap to Minshew catalyzed the Cardinals' comeback, and they're hoping that momentum continues into Seattle. They've committed to it so much to the point where Jacoby Brissett is no longer an option, with Arizona finalizing its trade with the Baltimore Ravens on Friday.
The swap from Brissett to Minshew and the injuries piling up in the wide receiver room give Wilson a perfect runway for a potential second-half breakout.
Michael Wilson could have another second-half breakout for Cardinals
It was around this time last year that he turned a corner to have that breakout, which really started with a 185-yard receiving game in a 41-22 loss to the San Francisco 49ers on Nov. 16. Could history be repeating itself with Minshew this time around?
Looking at Wilson's numbers from last year, his targets were the most telling sign of his breakout, as he's always had the talent but finally became more of a focal point in Arizona's offense. For instance, he caught 15 of 18 targets in that breakout against San Francisco last year. The fact that Minshew is heavily targeting Wilson is a great sign for his production going forward.
It's also not a great sign for the Cardinals offense as a whole, however, considering Minshew doesn't have many other options. Tight end Trey McBride is the obvious exception, who continues to produce regardless of how much coverage is on him. But with McBride oftentimes facing those double teams, it's even more important that Wilson can step up as that consistent WR1 to keep defenses honest.
That's even more so the case with Harrison no longer in the picture. Even though he wasn't producing in Arizona, the big frame, last name, and draft pedigree were all enough to draw plenty of attention. With all due respect, teams aren't going to be giving the same level of attention to Fehoko or whoever else Minshew has as an option to throw to going forward.
It's gotten so bad that the Cardinals should consider addressing their depleted wide receiver room leading up to the trade deadline, even though they shouldn't have any business being buyers at 3-5. Even as a rebuilding team, they still need enough infrastructure to put their quarterback in a position to succeed, with enough weapons around him.
The Cardinals appeared to be fine in that department, investing a top five pick in Harrison and reaching a three-year, $75 million extension with Wilson. But with this room falling apart at midseason, it's even more imperative that Wilson steps up to become that consistent WR1 for this team to generate offense. He's proven capable when given the opportunity and more targets, so hopefully the switch to Minshew unlocks yet another second-half breakout for Wilson.
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