Darius Robinson injured

[Chopper0080]

Get your Josh Allen / Dalton Kincaid stacks ready for daily fantasy tournaments. Gonna eat this defense alive.

 

[iLLmatiC]

Get your Josh Allen / Dalton Kincaid stacks ready for daily fantasy tournaments. Gonna eat this defense alive.

Game script is going to lean towards pass so your mhj picks should work out also.

 

[Chopper0080]

Game script is going to lean towards pass so your mhj picks should work out also.

Khalil Shakir is sneaky as well. Bills only kept 5 WR and Shakir got snaps ahead of Coleman (if I recall correctly)

 

[MadCardDisease]

Khalil Shakir is sneaky as well. Bills only kept 5 WR and Shakir got snaps ahead of Coleman (if I recall correctly)

I believe the Shakir is a big reason they were comfortable moving on from Diggs.

 

[Stout]

Get your Josh Allen / Dalton Kincaid stacks ready for daily fantasy tournaments. Gonna eat this defense alive.

I'd say, conservatively, we need to score more than 30 to have a chance to win.

 

[Garthshort]

Stout, no doubt that our O is better than our D, but consider this. On defense, in comparison to last year's team:
1. DL should be much improved.
2. ILB improved.
3. OLB about the same.
4. CB improved.
5. S improved.

Don't know how many PPG we gave up last year, but I see improvement this year. Chance we move from the bottom to middle of the pact. And, going forward we just have to target our Edge group for an upgrade to make our Defense a Top Half group. I realize this is an optimistic POV, but think that most would agree we'll be better on D.

 

[Stout]

Stout, no doubt that our O is better than our D, but consider this. On defense, in comparison to last year's team:
1. DL should be much improved.
2. ILB improved.
3. OLB about the same.
4. CB improved.
5. S improved.

Don't know how many PPG we gave up last year, but I see improvement this year. Chance we move from the bottom to middle of the pact. And, going forward we just have to target our Edge group for an upgrade to make our Defense a Top Half group. I realize this is an optimistic POV, but think that most would agree we'll be better on D.

1. Maybe the DL improved, but improved from garbage to slightly okay with no inside pass rush threat.
2. ILB about the same.
3. OLB worse, clearly, as Beej is lost for the season.
4. CB maybe improved. There is hope there. The talent needs to show out, though.
5. Safety maybe improved, all hinging on one non-premium draft pick. The talent still needs to show out.

I'd say our D has improved slightly, but nowhere near as much as needed. We're still a ways away from being a bang average defense, for my part. We could have done a lot better improving that side of the ball and it would have given us a legit shot at the playoffs.

 

[Garthshort]

And F/W/I/W, our poor defense, according to Google, gave up 26 PPG last year.

 

[kerouac9]

And F/W/I/W, our poor defense, according to Google, gave up 26 PPG last year.

Yes. That was 31st in the NFL.

 

[Garthshort]

Of course it was made to seem higher with the claim that we have to score 30+ to win. But don't let facts ruin an opinion. I get it.

 

[Krangodnzr]

1. Maybe the DL improved, but improved from garbage to slightly okay with no inside pass rush threat.

Can't really disagree, especially with DRob down. Justin Jones was a decent interior pass rusher last year and Nichols once was viewed as a guy who could get some push, but there really isn't a clear answer.

2. ILB about the same.

The hope is that Mack Wilson is better than Woods (he should be) and that Pappoe has improved. There is room for improvement here.

3. OLB worse, clearly, as Beej is lost for the season.

This is likely true, but X. Thomas is a clear wildcard on passing downs. As much as I wanted BO to be the guy, I would say at best it's a 50/50 proposition.

4. CB maybe improved. There is hope there. The talent needs to show out, though.

Agreed. Williams was the best CB the Cardinals had last year, albeit on limited snaps. But the lack of pass rush will be a challenge for this young group.

5. Safety maybe improved, all hinging on one non-premium draft pick. The talent still needs to show out.

I'm pretty bullish on Rabbit. The Cardinals had no answers when Budda and Jalen were injured.

I'd say our D has improved slightly, but nowhere near as much as needed. We're still a ways away from being a bang average defense, for my part. We could have done a lot better improving that side of the ball and it would have given us a legit shot at the playoffs.

Agreed that it's only a slight improvement. I expect the Cardinals to at best be a bottom 10 defense.

 

[Stout]

And F/W/I/W, our poor defense, according to Google, gave up 26 PPG last year.

Exactly.

 

[Chopper0080]

This issue with the defensive improvement discussion is that the talent level was so bad last year. Is SMB an upgrade at CB? Yes. Is he a "good" NFL CB? Probably not without a decent pass rush (which we don't seem to have). Starling Thomas was our #2/3 CB last year...and he is still our #2/3 CB. Melton and Jones are different players than what we had last year, but neither has looked this preseason. Maybe they get better. Maybe not.

I think you can easily say our DL is better and potentially could be a league average group once DRob comes back.

Our EDGE group is one of the worst in the NFL.

ILB is probably about the same. I am sure Mack Wilson is better but not sure how much better and if it will really matter.

We have more talented depth at S but it is unproven. I would make S a push with potential for better.

CB is a mystery box. The lack of pass rush will make it tough to evaluate. Few CBs in the league look good when the QB can sit in the pocket.

My point is that the defensive talent could be improved from last year and the Cardinals could still be a bottom 5 defense. Monti gutted the unit that was already short on talent, and has done piecemeal improvements.

 

[Chopper0080]

Of course it was made to seem higher with the claim that we have to score 30+ to win. But don't let facts ruin an opinion. I get it.

Cardinals gave up 30+ points 7 times last year and had the 5th worse point differential. Based upon that, saying the Cardinals will likely have to score 30+ to win games (especially vs good QBs) is not a stretch.

 

[ASUCHRIS]

The "Trust Monti" contingent has never explained how signing a decent pass rusher on a short term deal would have prevented long term success. I'm guessing that's a question that just won't be addressed.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

lol. I don't believe I have that club in the bag.

Seriously though, the inability for people to say they are/were wrong on this board is one of the few issues I have with it. It's ok to have a misinformed take. I have my share of them for sure, and I have spent a lot of my life around football. I would rather have K9, Dvontel, Chris, Cheese, crimson or madcard point it out than continuing to be misinformed.

I will get off my soapbox now.

Amen. I’ve always said I would prefer to be proven wrong today so I can be correct tomorrow than to dig in and be wrong forever due to ego or pride.

 

[Chopper0080]

The "Trust Monti" contingent has never explained how signing a decent pass rusher on a short term deal would have prevented long term success. I'm guessing that's a question that just won't be addressed.

This is an actual truth.

Daniel Hunter signed a 2 year contract.

Marcus Davenport signed a 1 year contract.

Chase Young signed a 1 year contract.

Bryce Huff signed a 3 year contract.

Dorance Armstrong signed a 3 year deal.

Leonard Floyd a 2 year deal.

Yetur Gross-Matos signed a 2 year deal.

None of these contracts were cost prohibitive in either the short or long term. Monti crapped the bed when it came to EDGE this off-season.

EDIT: Would I be surprised if there was a spending limit put on Monti? No, but I also don't really care. He took the job. It is on him to figure it out.

 

[MadCardDisease]

This issue with the defensive improvement discussion is that the talent level was so bad last year. Is SMB an upgrade at CB? Yes. Is he a "good" NFL CB? Probably not without a decent pass rush (which we don't seem to have). Starling Thomas was our #2/3 CB last year...and he is still our #2/3 CB. Melton and Jones are different players than what we had last year, but neither has looked this preseason. Maybe they get better. Maybe not.

I think you can easily say our DL is better and potentially could be a league average group once DRob comes back.

Our EDGE group is one of the worst in the NFL.

ILB is probably about the same. I am sure Mack Wilson is better but not sure how much better and if it will really matter.

We have more talented depth at S but it is unproven. I would make S a push with potential for better.

CB is a mystery box. The lack of pass rush will make it tough to evaluate. Few CBs in the league look good when the QB can sit in the pocket.

My point is that the defensive talent could be improved from last year and the Cardinals could still be a bottom 5 defense. Monti gutted the unit that was already short on talent, and has done piecemeal improvements.

As you mentioned, last season was a complete reset and because of that the defense has zero depth to start the season. So once injuries started piling up last season the wheels really started to fall off on the defense side of the ball.

I think the big difference this season is that the depth is much improved on the defensive side of the ball across the board. Yes CB is still a question mark but I like it much better than what they had last season. Edge is the one position where there are still huge question marks. Monti still hasn't found an adequate replacement for BJ and that is very concerning. I like the potential of Thomas but I really don't want to have to rely on an unproven rookie to fill that role.

 

[BullheadCardFan]

Monti crapped the bed when it came to EDGE this off-season.

EDIT: Would I be surprised if there was a spending limit put on Monti? No, but I also don't really care. He took the job. It is on him to figure it out.

!00% this

No excuse for his non-action toward the EDGE position

 

[JohnnyCakes]

The "Trust Monti" contingent has never explained how signing a decent pass rusher on a short term deal would have prevented long term success. I'm guessing that's a question that just won't be addressed.

who are the candidates for this?

 

[DVontel]

Marcus Davenport signed a 1 year contract.

Chase Young signed a 1 year contract.

Yetur Gross-Matos signed a 2 year deal.

Hell nah to these.

 

[Shane]

who are the candidates for this?

Literally 2 posts later not sure if good options but def answered

 

[ASUCHRIS]

Hell nah to these.

You'd rather have our current group than add ANY of these players? That's a wild take.

 

[PDXChris]

You'd rather have our current group than add ANY of these players? That's a wild take.

Hunter for sure, even for more years. These two on 1 year deals.


Daniel Hunter signed a 2 year contract.

Marcus Davenport signed a 1 year contract.

Chase Young signed a 1 year contract.

 

[gmabel830]

Two guys I wouldn't mind us taking a look at via trade:

1. Joe Tryon-Shoyinka - Bucs declined his 5th year option, so there's speculation about him, He had 5 sacks last year and 13 in his first 3 seasons. Read there's a proposed trade to 49ers for a 6th round pick that was recently discussed. I'd be willing to give that up for him.

2. Azeez Ojulari (BJ's older brother) - Giants - His numbers have gone down in each of his first 3 seasons as he's battled injuries, but still has 16 sacks in his first 3 years (half of which as a rookie when healthy all year).

Both guys in last year of their contract, but young so we could potentially re-up if they have a good year.