A Very Positive Start
What caused my rant early in the week was the thought that for a second year in a row the Cardinals would not add a bona fide edge pass rusher via free agency or trade. When Whiz was claiming he was happy with the young players and the depth at the OLB position, and when there seemed to be no urgency in signing Joey Porter and he was headed off to meet with the Redksins, I was feeling "completely frustrated."
I was also feeling frustrated about having to wait so long to know what was going on with QB Charlie Whitehurst. I am not sure if we will ever know what changed the tide on that one. My guess is that the Cardinals weren't sure what kind of money to commit to Whitehurst and probably thought at the beginning they could sign him to a deal similar to what Chris Carr got with the 49ers. When the Seahawks got involved and upped the ante, the Cardinals got cold feet and moved on.
I admit, that despite some leeriness about his having never played in a game yet, I was excited about Whitehurst, because of his big arm and potential. The way I figured it was that if Matt Leinart struggled this year, Whitehurst could emerge as the bona fide QBOF and it would have only cost us a 3rd rounder.
However, I was delighted to learn that my interpretation of Whiz's stance on the OLB/DE position was incorrect. What I perceived as a lack of priority and urgency was actually the opposite, because not only did he go out and sign Joey Porter, we have recently learned that he tried to trade for the Browns' Kamerion Wimbley.
Whiz is again proving---even though he's difficult to read at times---that these are not the same old Cardinals.
Now that we have a bona fide edge pass rusher, we are starting to look and more and more prolific on defense. The thing is too that Porter will not only help the young OLBers (Brown, Davis, Washington and Baggs) improve, he will actually help the offense improve. I remarked last year a few times that the Cardinals' tackles were having a tough time adjusting to the better edge rushers, because the Cardinals did not have any to line up against them in practice. This year they do, and the others should get better.
As I've said, adding Porter is a huge psychological boost for this defense, as was adding FS Kerry Rhodes via the trade with the Jets. Two outstanding moves right there.
I also love the signing of Rex Hadnot, who gives the Cardinals a player who can win one of the guard spots, and can save them a roster spot by being able to play center if called upon.
The re-signings of Jeremy Bridges and Anthony Becht were excellent moves as well. We know Bridges can be a solid option at LT if neede there and he too can play guard. Becht chose not to sign elsewhere and remains a key player on the offense as a good blocking TE.
I think QB Derek Anderson is the best the Cardinals could do in free agency. And if he responds as well as I think he will to Whiz's coaching he has two years to make a case for being the QBOF. He's still young, and has had one very good year to hang his hat on.
The only signing I think most of us are curious about is of LB Paris Lenon. When I learned that Larry Foote was going to sign as a backup with the Stellers I was happy that the Cardinals at least signed someone instead. Then it was interesting to hear that the Cardinals felt that Lenon projected better to the WILB spot than Foote. Lenon did have two very productive years in Detroit before getting cut by the Patriots, signed by the Rams and only registering 42 tackles in 10 starts last year. What concerns me is that the only time in recent years he played in the 3-4, it did not go as well as planned in that he was cut by the Patriots.
I think Lenon will come in here highly motivated and may be a nice surprise. I think he will be inspired to finally play on a winning team, rather than on a cellar dweller. So, we'll see.
The Boldin trade...again...I think the Cardinals did as well as they could. It already enabled them to trade for Kerry Rhodes and still have another 4th round pick.
However, there's still a great deal of work left to do this off-season. It could well be that the Cardinals still don't have the starting two ILBers on their roster yet. They have to settle the CB and #4 S situation. I think they could use another edge pass rusher who is less of a hybrid 3-4 OLB and more of a DE to go opposite of Porter in the 4 man rush. And the team needs some added depth at WR and NT, and two starters at K and FB.
The work is still in progress, but thanks to Whiz's and the FO's persistency , the Cardinals are, to quote Chicago, "feeling stronger every day."
