When it comes to expectations for the 2024 season, not many people have many for the Arizona Cardinals, or at least not positive expectations. The Cardinals are coming off back-to-back four-win seasons and hold the fourth overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft as a result of their poor showing in 2023.
Despite winning just four games, the Cardinals were a sneaky team in 2023. Three of their four wins came against playoff teams (Cowboys, Eagles, and Steelers) and they gave teams some trouble even in losing efforts.
So, what's to make of this squad as we progress through the 2024 offseason? Well, Kay Adams of Up and Adams is a fan of what the Cardinals have to offer this year.
I probably like the 2024 @AZCardinals more than you do.pic.twitter.com/7ikj72U8hb
— Kay Adams (@heykayadams) March 25, 2024
Kay Adams praises the Arizona Cardinals when not many others are
Kay kicks off her praise of the Cardinals by noting that the team clearly likes Jonathan Gannon and respects him as a coach. "This group played their asses off for Jonathan Gannon his first season. They like playing for him," Adams said and she's not wrong. She points to those wins against the playoff teams and playing both the Ravens and Texans tough as well. Gannon didn't enter an easy situation when he accepted the Cardinals job but it's obvious that this team loves playing for him and wants to win games for him.
Next, Kay moves onto Kyler Murray and she mentions that a lot of people gave up on Murray after the situation with studying in his contract was made public. She agrees that he deserves to be written off a bit because he hasn't played up to his potential but noted that he showed potential when he returned to the lineup even when the Cardinals were out of the playoff running by that point.
Kay referred back to when she had Budda Baker on her show and played the clip of him praising Murray's leadership. Kay then points out the criticisms directed at Murray and how people say he's not a leader but Baker's interview proves that isn't true.
A graphic is displayed that shows that the Cardinals had the best total offense in the final four games, sitting with an average of 414.3 yards per game during that time. Murray, of course, played in all four of those games.
"While Arizona hasn't done a ton this offseason, if they can snag a Marvin Harrison Jr. or Malik Nabers at 4 overall and another piece, what do they pick -- 27th -- with that pick from the Texans... Listen, they're all of a sudden off to a pretty fun start offensively."
Kay makes plenty of great points here. If the Cardinals stay put fourth overall, they can more than likely acquire Marvin Harrison Jr. to help jumpstart their offense and give Murray arguably the best weapon he's had since entering the league in 2019.
When it comes to making the playoffs in 2024, Kay said she's not quite sure they're to that level yet but points out that it's obvious the team is headed in the right direction. She uses Baker as an example again, noting that he previously wanted to be traded but now is singing the praises of his team.
Kay Adams certainly had a lot of nice things to say about the Arizona Cardinals so let's hope she's right with her assessment here!