kerouac9
Klowned by Keim
It seems like the Cards' 2011 offseason is largely complete. The veteran acquisitions will sign their contracts and begin practicing tomorrow, the General Manager has turned his focus to Larry Fitzgerald, and there isn't much left on the free agent market besides troubled players or roster filler. So I'll give my evaluation of the 2011 offseason (so far).
The Good
- Getting what we wanted for the quarterback position. The Cards really weren't interested in the free agent quarterbacks available. They only had eyes for Kevin Kolb, and they got their man. There are no excuses for play at the quarterback position for the next three years, because the coaching staff and front office got the quarterback they coveted.
- Signing Kolb to a good contract. My greatest fear was that we would extend Kolb to a contract that would hang around the franchise's neck like an albatross for the next half-decade. Thankfully, that wasn't the case. The guaranteed money given up for Kolb ensures that he's the starter for the next two years, but will also put him on a short leash in 2013 and not prevent the Cardinals from investing a high pick at the position in the 2013 draft.
- Re-signing Deuce Lutui. It didn't go the way that anyone had planned, but the Cardinals' most consistent offensive lineman the last two seasons has returned and is reportedly more motivated than ever. Lutui is a player that a team needs to keep around. He clearly loves the team and the community. I don't care how much you weigh: welcome back, big guy.
- Signing a veteran cornerback. The Cards easily could have gone into the 2011 season with Toler, Peterson, and Mike Adams as the core of the cornerback group. They wisely opted to get a legitimate outside competitor for Toler and Peterson in the free agent market.
- Building a tight-end corps. For years the Arizona Cardinals have had the least talented tight end group in the NFL. By signing Todd Heap, Jeff King, drafting Housler, and continuing to develop Jim Dray, the Cards don't have near the strongest TE crew in the NFL, but they have a unit they can legitimately compete with.
- Finding help along the defensive line. Alan Branch and Gabe Watson turned out being poor fits to the scheme, and the Cards did a good job bringing in Nick Eason and Vonnie Holliday to bolster the most talented group on the defense.
- Making a clean break on Tim Hightower. Timmy Hightower was in danger of becoming The Guy You Turn To When Things Go Wrong. The issue is that Hightower is never going to straighten out his fumbling problem, and the Cards can't depend on him in important situations. The fact that the front office got anything at all for a running back who can't hold on to the football is the single greatest accomplishment of the 2011 offseason.
The Bad
- Giving up too much for what you wanted at the quarterback position. This is the last time I'll say it: The Cards gave up too much for Kevin Kolb. If Kolb turns out to be a Pro Bowl quarterback, they'll still have given up too much to get him. The coaching staff and front office staked their jobs on a guy who has started 7 games in the NFL.
- Failing to acquire a legitimate rush linebacker. I have as high hopes for O'Brien Schofield and (to a lesser extent) Sam Acho as anyone here, but hope is not a plan. The Cardinals' reconfigured secondary will only be as good as the pass rush in front of them. When Joey Porter elected to reduce his salary for 2011, it likely closed the book on the Cardinals looking for outside help in the pass rush. Inexplicably, Matt Roth remains unsigned. The ridiculous contract extension for Kamerion Wembley may have complicated free agent signings for pass rushers for quite some time.
- No help for the offensive tackles. It looks like we're running with Levi Brown, Jeremy Bridges, and Brandon Keith for at least the start of the 2011 season. After how well this group performed at protecting the passer in 2010, it's easy to see why the coaching staff has such faith in these guys. The Cardinals didn't need to invest a ton of money in free agents for this position, but they needed to bring in legitimate competition for Brown especially.
- Wide receiver question marks. Hope is not a plan, but the Cards are hoping that Andre Roberts, Early Doucet, Stephen Williams, or Chansi Stuckey are going to be dependable second or third options for Kevin Kolb in the passing attack. Steve Breaston became a go-to target for shaky Derek Anderson early in the season because he had an ability to get open quickly and move the chains. The Cards weren't willing to take a risk on Breaston's balky knees, which is understandable. The Cards are depending on an aging Todd Heap to come to Kevin Kolb's aid in those few situations where Larry Fitzgerald is covered.
- Risky calculated risks. There were safer options than linebacker Stewart Bradley and cornerback Richard Marshall on the free agency market. The Cards made a commitment to Bradley to be a medium-term fixture on the defensive interior despite injury and poor play the last two seasons for the Eagles. Richard Marshall was one of the worst starting corners in the NFL last season despite being on a team with a double-digit sack artist and a solid overall defense.
The Ugly
- Dismantling the core of the team. A year ago if you'd asked what the core of the Arizona Cardinals was, it would be Fitzgerald, Wilson, Dockett, Lutui... and DRC. Those were the proven commodities on the team. One of those pieces is off the team, and another in Wilson had a deep drop-off in performance. A third is on a one-year contract. It's hard to have confidence in a 2010 draft class that helped the team to a 5-11 record their first year and were prohibited from working out at the facility in their first full offseason. If Larry Fitzgerald isn't happy with the direction of the team enough to sign a long-term contract extension, the long-term future of the franchise will look very bleak indeed.
- The Great Can Kick of 2011 At this moment, four of eleven projected offensive starters and four of eleven defensive starters are on one-year contracts or in the last year of their deals. Continuity is the number one factor for successful NFL franchises. If the Cards can't extend at least Fitzgerald, Campbell, and one of the offensive tackles in-season, the team is going to be looking at another exodus of talent they have developed over four years and a re-shaping of the roster. It's also possible that with the additions of Marshall, Eason, and Heap they've somehow managed to get older. The exodus of homegrown talent has to end at some point if the Cardinals are going to have consistent success.
The Good
- Getting what we wanted for the quarterback position. The Cards really weren't interested in the free agent quarterbacks available. They only had eyes for Kevin Kolb, and they got their man. There are no excuses for play at the quarterback position for the next three years, because the coaching staff and front office got the quarterback they coveted.
- Signing Kolb to a good contract. My greatest fear was that we would extend Kolb to a contract that would hang around the franchise's neck like an albatross for the next half-decade. Thankfully, that wasn't the case. The guaranteed money given up for Kolb ensures that he's the starter for the next two years, but will also put him on a short leash in 2013 and not prevent the Cardinals from investing a high pick at the position in the 2013 draft.
- Re-signing Deuce Lutui. It didn't go the way that anyone had planned, but the Cardinals' most consistent offensive lineman the last two seasons has returned and is reportedly more motivated than ever. Lutui is a player that a team needs to keep around. He clearly loves the team and the community. I don't care how much you weigh: welcome back, big guy.
- Signing a veteran cornerback. The Cards easily could have gone into the 2011 season with Toler, Peterson, and Mike Adams as the core of the cornerback group. They wisely opted to get a legitimate outside competitor for Toler and Peterson in the free agent market.
- Building a tight-end corps. For years the Arizona Cardinals have had the least talented tight end group in the NFL. By signing Todd Heap, Jeff King, drafting Housler, and continuing to develop Jim Dray, the Cards don't have near the strongest TE crew in the NFL, but they have a unit they can legitimately compete with.
- Finding help along the defensive line. Alan Branch and Gabe Watson turned out being poor fits to the scheme, and the Cards did a good job bringing in Nick Eason and Vonnie Holliday to bolster the most talented group on the defense.
- Making a clean break on Tim Hightower. Timmy Hightower was in danger of becoming The Guy You Turn To When Things Go Wrong. The issue is that Hightower is never going to straighten out his fumbling problem, and the Cards can't depend on him in important situations. The fact that the front office got anything at all for a running back who can't hold on to the football is the single greatest accomplishment of the 2011 offseason.
The Bad
- Giving up too much for what you wanted at the quarterback position. This is the last time I'll say it: The Cards gave up too much for Kevin Kolb. If Kolb turns out to be a Pro Bowl quarterback, they'll still have given up too much to get him. The coaching staff and front office staked their jobs on a guy who has started 7 games in the NFL.
- Failing to acquire a legitimate rush linebacker. I have as high hopes for O'Brien Schofield and (to a lesser extent) Sam Acho as anyone here, but hope is not a plan. The Cardinals' reconfigured secondary will only be as good as the pass rush in front of them. When Joey Porter elected to reduce his salary for 2011, it likely closed the book on the Cardinals looking for outside help in the pass rush. Inexplicably, Matt Roth remains unsigned. The ridiculous contract extension for Kamerion Wembley may have complicated free agent signings for pass rushers for quite some time.
- No help for the offensive tackles. It looks like we're running with Levi Brown, Jeremy Bridges, and Brandon Keith for at least the start of the 2011 season. After how well this group performed at protecting the passer in 2010, it's easy to see why the coaching staff has such faith in these guys. The Cardinals didn't need to invest a ton of money in free agents for this position, but they needed to bring in legitimate competition for Brown especially.
- Wide receiver question marks. Hope is not a plan, but the Cards are hoping that Andre Roberts, Early Doucet, Stephen Williams, or Chansi Stuckey are going to be dependable second or third options for Kevin Kolb in the passing attack. Steve Breaston became a go-to target for shaky Derek Anderson early in the season because he had an ability to get open quickly and move the chains. The Cards weren't willing to take a risk on Breaston's balky knees, which is understandable. The Cards are depending on an aging Todd Heap to come to Kevin Kolb's aid in those few situations where Larry Fitzgerald is covered.
- Risky calculated risks. There were safer options than linebacker Stewart Bradley and cornerback Richard Marshall on the free agency market. The Cards made a commitment to Bradley to be a medium-term fixture on the defensive interior despite injury and poor play the last two seasons for the Eagles. Richard Marshall was one of the worst starting corners in the NFL last season despite being on a team with a double-digit sack artist and a solid overall defense.
The Ugly
- Dismantling the core of the team. A year ago if you'd asked what the core of the Arizona Cardinals was, it would be Fitzgerald, Wilson, Dockett, Lutui... and DRC. Those were the proven commodities on the team. One of those pieces is off the team, and another in Wilson had a deep drop-off in performance. A third is on a one-year contract. It's hard to have confidence in a 2010 draft class that helped the team to a 5-11 record their first year and were prohibited from working out at the facility in their first full offseason. If Larry Fitzgerald isn't happy with the direction of the team enough to sign a long-term contract extension, the long-term future of the franchise will look very bleak indeed.
- The Great Can Kick of 2011 At this moment, four of eleven projected offensive starters and four of eleven defensive starters are on one-year contracts or in the last year of their deals. Continuity is the number one factor for successful NFL franchises. If the Cards can't extend at least Fitzgerald, Campbell, and one of the offensive tackles in-season, the team is going to be looking at another exodus of talent they have developed over four years and a re-shaping of the roster. It's also possible that with the additions of Marshall, Eason, and Heap they've somehow managed to get older. The exodus of homegrown talent has to end at some point if the Cardinals are going to have consistent success.
