Offseason Analysis: Arizona Cardinals

The Cardinals have a lot of question marks entering into the Offseason. Namely, what is going to happen with Kurt Warner and Anquan Boldin. Kurt Warner could jump ship or even retire. Matt Leinart hasn’t proven he is an NFL caliber Quarterback so Cardinal fans are crossing their fingers. Boldin is unhappy with his contract situation and his relationship with the team has gone sour. Despite his unhappiness, I don’t see Anquan playing anywhere else in 2009. I wouldn’t put a holdout past him though.

That’s what we don’t know. Let’s take a look at what we do know. Larry Fitzgerald will be one of the top wide receivers taken in fantasy drafts next year, and rightfully so. He’s always shown great hands and leaping ability, but in the Super Bowl he showed a new gear on his second TD. That play will give Defensive Coordinators nightmares this offseason. Another thing we know is that Edge is gone. I’m not sure where he’ll turn up, but the Cards will be in the market for a RB to compliment Tim Hightower. Darren Sproles would look great in that role, but I don’t see Arizona being a player in that sweepstakes. My guess is they address that need in the draft.

Their Offensive Coordinator Todd Haley moved on to Kansas City. Without knowing who their OC or QB is next year makes it difficult to forecast what kind of changes to expect.

On Defense, their key free agents are Karlos Dansby, Bertrand Berry, Antonio Smith and Clark Haggans with Dansby being the top priority.

** Update: The Cardinals slapped Karlos Dansby with the franchise tag. **

KFFL Free Agent Tracker:

Pos	Player Name	FA Status	Previous Team	Current Team
QB	Brian St. Pierre	UFA	Arizona Cardinals	Free Agent
QB	Kurt Warner	UFA	Arizona Cardinals	Free Agent
RB	J.J. Arrington	UFA	Arizona Cardinals	Free Agent
FB	Tim Castille	ERFA	Arizona Cardinals	Free Agent
FB	Terrelle Smith	UFA	Arizona Cardinals	Free Agent
WR	Onrea Jones	Re-signed	Arizona Cardinals	Arizona Cardinals
WR	Lance Long	Re-signed	Arizona Cardinals	Arizona Cardinals
TE	Ben Patrick	ERFA	Arizona Cardinals	Free Agent
TE	Leonard Pope	RFA	Arizona Cardinals	Free Agent
TE	Stephen Spach	UFA	Arizona Cardinals	Free Agent
C	Lyle Sendlein	ERFA	Arizona Cardinals	Free Agent
DL	Bertrand Berry	UFA	Arizona Cardinals	Free Agent
DL	Ray Blagman	ERFA	Arizona Cardinals	Free Agent
DL	Keilen Dykes	Re-signed	Arizona Cardinals	Arizona Cardinals
DL	Gabe Watson	RFA	Arizona Cardinals	Free Agent
LB	Monty Beisel	UFA	Arizona Cardinals	Free Agent
CB	Wilrey Fontenot	Re-signed	Arizona Cardinals	Arizona Cardinals
SS	Dennis Keyes	Re-signed	Arizona Cardinals	Arizona Cardinals

CK0712 Says:
February 9th, 2009 at 9:59 am

not fantasy standpoint: warner says boldin will have a big factor in his choice to come back

i’d love to see boldin in green, but i really don’t think he’ll leave zona….he would HATE PA weather LOL!

LestersLegends Says:
February 9th, 2009 at 10:01 am

They will have to mend those fences, but maybe Haley’s departure will be a good thing for Boldin.

Joe Zwierzynski Says:
February 9th, 2009 at 8:45 pm

I could see Derrick Ward as an option in Arizona. I think the Giants could still match for Boldin if they want to. They have an extra 2nd and 5th from the Saints for Jeremy Shockey.

Besides draft picks, I could see the following guys being trade bait:
Ahmad Bradshaw (nice cheap alternative to pair with Hightower)
Mathias Kiwanuka (could be expendable with Osi coming back)
One of the younger receivers such as Domenick Hixon, Steve Smith, Mario Manningham, or Sinorice Moss

Does Bradshaw, Hixon, and the higher 2nd get it done for Boldin? They get the pairing with Hightower, Hixon adds a good 3rd with Breaston and Fitz, and the lower salaries will help them with their free agent situation.

Is this realistic, or am I just a Giant homer?

LestersLegends Says:
February 9th, 2009 at 8:54 pm

Trades are so rare in the NFL, but that one makes sense. I’m not sure why, but people seem to favor draft picks than guys with track records. That could be better than any offer Arizona receives, especially from a financial standpoint.

Larry Says:
February 11th, 2009 at 7:34 pm

The biggest problem the cards may have is it seems that the Super Bowl Loser seems to always take a huge tumble the next year, Only the Seahawks of the recent losers have been able to make it to the playoffs, Oh and the Patriots were still very good but had the bad break that the Chargers had to be in the playoffs.

LestersLegends Says:
February 11th, 2009 at 7:38 pm

I hear you there, but I don’t put too much stock into it. It’s a bad coincidence. I guess some of the prob is success means people want to get paid and their play could price you out. usually you’re OK with your asst coaches though because most of the jobs are gone. it was an exception this year for haley.

Arizona basketball Says:
March 12th, 2009 at 6:32 pm