Predicting The 2011 Arizona Cardinals' Roster

[Mitch]

QB (3): 10-Marc Bulger; 19-John Skelton; 2-Richard Bartell.

Inevitable. Cards won't want to give anything up in a trade---thus forget about Kevin Kolb or Kyle Orton, for example.

Signing Donovan McNabb would be an emotional boost...especially for Fitz. But, they can sign Bulger for significantly less.

It will be announced that Bulger will battle with Skelton, Bartell and Hall for the starting job. But, this is a fait accompli---at least until Whiz feels comfortable with Skelton.

Bartell is the next St. Pierre...smart #3. They figure they wil be able to sign Max Hall to the PS.

RB (4): 34-Tim Hightower; 26-Beanie Wells; 36-LaRod Stephens-Howling; 31-Jason Wright.

Status quo here. They will want LSH to get stronger so they can play him more. They re-sign Wright for STs again.

FB (1): 45-Reagan Maui'a.

They are happy with his progress.

TE (3): 83-Stephen Spach; 81-Jim Dray; 89-Mike McNeill (6-4, 248, Nebraska, 4th round).

Spach is the B-Rob of the offense---a Whiz fave who looks real iffy on tape most of the time. The team will say they tried to re-sign Ben Patrick, but he will sign elsewhere.

OL (9): 75-Levi Brown; 70-Rex Hadnot; 63-Lyle Sendlein; 76-Deuce Lutui; 72-Brandon Keith; 73-Jeremy Bridges; 61-Steven Wisnewski (G/C, 6-3, 297, 2nd Round); 77-Jason Pinkston (LT, 6-4, 305, Pittsburgh, 3rd Round); 68-Tom Pestock.

Whiz takes a Wis---a versatile interior lineman who may be able to start right away. Pinkston would be a steal in the early 60s of the draft. Keep an eye on Texas' Kyle Hix as well.

WR (6): 11-Larry Fitzgerald; 15-Steve Breaston; 80-Early Doucet; 12-Andre Roberts; 18-Max Komar; 14-Stephen Williams.

The Cardinals may have to use the f-tag on Breaston. The hope will be to avoid that...but Breaston may follow past examples, like Karlos Dansby. Would not be surprised to see a trade involving Early Doucet, perhaps on draft day to move up.

NT (2): 97-Bryan Robinson; 92-Dan Williams.

The Cardinals obviously have a higher opinion of B-Rob than any of us can figure out. By de-activating Gabe Watson so frequently, the team and he obviously are in the process of parting ways. Don't be surprised if Robinson is starting the first game---especially if Bill Davis is still the DC---which at this point looks more likely than not.

DE (4): 90-Darnell Dockett; 93-Calais Campbell; 91-Kenny Iwebema; 96-Ronald Talley.

Do you really think Alan "I'd just as soon be a substitute DE than NT starter" Branch is going to re-sign with the Cardinals? He has been auditioning for his next gig, which will be---in all likelihood---with the Eagles or Patriots.

There could be a draft pick here depending on what Kenny Iwebema's prognosis is.

ILB (4): 52-D'Qwell Jackson; 58-Daryl Washington; 51-Paris Lenon; 56-Reggie Walker.

McCreight goes hard for Jackson and gets him.

OLB (5): 53-Clark Haggans; 55-Joey Porter; 58-Will Davis; 50-O'Brien Schofield; 42-Robert Quinn (6-5, 270, North Carolina, 1st round)

This week Kerry Rhodes was exclaiming we are a "couple of pieces away" from being a great defense. Well, the Cardinals will gamble that Quinn didn't lose much after a year off and that he is one of the main pieces they need.

CB (5): 29-Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie; 23-Eric Wright; 28-Greg Toler; 27-Michael Adams; 20-A.J. Jefferson.

McCreight hops all over Eric Wright---who struggled a tad more than usual this year, but has very good skills and is still young. Gives the team excellent depth and talent at the position. Keep an eye on A.J. Jefferson too, who has great physical talents.

S (4): 24-Adrian Wilson; 25-Kerry Rhodes; 49-Rashad Johnson; 44-Jaiquawn Jarrett (6-2, 197, Temple, 5th Round).

The team may make a push to sign UFA Dashawn Goldson...the kind of hitter/enforcer/role player complement they need. But, if he signs elsewhere, they go ahead and draft Jarrett.

ST (3): 3-Jay Feely; 5-Ben Graham; 82-Mike Leach.

Three of the very best at their jobs...although Graham slipped a little this year.

These are the choices I believe the Cardinals will make. I don't necessarily agree with all of them...so please spare me the ad hominems. Thank you! Nah...go ahead...blast away!!!

 

[BigRedRage]

brob came out of retirement to help Dan Williams, he wont be back.

 

[juza76]

if we draft r.quinn i dont see j.porter making the roster

 

[Doc Cardinal]

if we draft r.quinn i dont see j.porter making the roster

Which is a good thing....if Quinn is still on the board when we draft.

 

[joeshmo]

Cards have no problem trading for players. They proved so last year. See no reason why they wouldnt trade for Kolb or Orten, assuming they liked either one that is.

No way possible they are keeping Porter on a 6 mill base salary price tag plus another 1 mill available through workout bonuses and incentives. Porter was signed as a one year experiment only.

Everything else seems very plausible besides "Brob", which Big Red already touched on, and my hatred for Robert Quinn as a NFL prospect.

 

[juza76]

i dont know what happened with stephen williams..everybody were considering him so high in preseason..it looked like a steal but then he never seen the field.now even komar who was cut earlier he is playing ahead of him..

 

[Garthshort]

Steve Wisnewski might be a VG player, I'll take Mitch's word on him, but I'm guessing we'll go OT in the second round, based on need.

 

[joeshmo]

i dont know what happened with stephen williams..everybody were considering him so high in preseason..it looked like a steal but then he never seen the field.now even komar who was cut earlier he is playing ahead of him..

Komar played ahead of him in the last game because they needed another slot receiver in most of the packages. Komar is a slot receiver and Williams is not. I don't think the last games playing time should be an indication of what they feel about the two players IMO.

 

[kerouac9]

The Franchise tag number for WRs next season should be north of $10 million. The 2010 number was $9.521 million. Steve Breaston didn't catch a single pass and wasn't targeted much Christmas Day. Breaston hasn't scored a TD since Week 3, and hasn't gone over 100 yards since Week 8. Do people here really want to commit $25 million to the WR position for 2011 for that? Bleagh.

It's stunning how quickly Mitch turned on Max Hall.

 

[juza76]

Komar played ahead of him in the last game because they needed another slot receiver in most of the packages. Komar is a slot receiver and Williams is not. I don't think the last games playing time should be an indication of what they feel about the two players IMO.

yes but for sure is regressed in their eyes because even roberts was behind him..and yesterday they benched breaston for neutro roberts

 

[az1965]

No way Robinson is starting next year at NT... no way. That will be utter stupidity. In fact, I will be surprised if he does not retire. That means we will need to bring a FA or draft a NT in the middle rounds.

 

[az1965]

i dont know what happened with stephen williams..everybody were considering him so high in preseason..it looked like a steal but then he never seen the field.now even komar who was cut earlier he is playing ahead of him..

Williams had a good pre-season against third stringers and when teams are not showing their schemes but struggled mightly when he had an opportunity to solidify his playing time while Breaston and Doucet were out. He may progress but so far he looks like crap.

 

[az1965]

The Franchise tag number for WRs next season should be north of $10 million. The 2010 number was $9.521 million. Steve Breaston didn't catch a single pass and wasn't targeted much Christmas Day. Breaston hasn't scored a TD since Week 3, and hasn't gone over 100 yards since Week 8. Do people here really want to commit $25 million to the WR position for 2011 for that? Bleagh.

It's stunning how quickly Mitch turned on Max Hall.

An easy solution is to extend him before that... that should not be too difficult, right?

 

[Duckjake]

Running through the roster:

Beanie Wells is done. He has no balance.
Hightower will be back. He no longer is a receiving threat but is solid in pass protection and is good at attacking the edges of the defense.
Maui'a he is one tough guy and I really like him. So he's gone. Just no place for a blocking FB in CKW's offense.
Skelator will be the QBOF. He has displayed all of the traits the other great NFL QBs had in their rookie seasons. Playing with a horsecrap bunch of WRs his work is even more impressive.
Breaston: If he signs for a reasonable contract he can stay but guys like him are a dime a dozen. We can use an upgrade here.
Roberts: Same for him.
Fitzgerald: has to stay. Regardless of his production the guy is THE face of the franchise. Give him 15% ownership if you have to but keep him in the AZ. In 55 years of watching pro sports I've never seen a more class act.
Tight End: Who cares? They are irrelevant. Just find somebody who can block.
Levi Brown: Just as I was beginning to think he was going to work out the Cards pulled a Denny Green and moved him to Left Tackle. STUPID. I don't know what to do now other than move him back.
Faneca: A real enigma. Just like the rest of the offensive line. 4 guys make great blocks and one guy blocks the wrong person. Depends on cost. Hadnot could probably do just as well so whoever is cheaper. (Sound like a Bidwill now don't I?)
Sendlein: As much as I hate to bag on a fellow Longhorn I must agree with those who say he is the weak spot in the offensive line. All the great teams have had a great Center. The C is the guy who makes the line calls. We have had far too many blown blocks over the last 3 seasons. Time to go get our own Jeff Saturday or Dan Koppen.
Lutui Forget it. One bad dude and a lifetime Cardinal fan. He can play for my Arizona team as long as he wants.
Keith Did nothing to impress me. Of course if I'd been Oline coach Bridges would be our LT and Levi would still be holding down the right side.

I'll get to the Defense in another post.

 

[az1965]

Running through the roster:

Beanie Wells is done. He has no balance.

Beanie is not done. Count on it.

 

[Duckjake]

DEFENSE

Joey Porter: Too small for our scheme. Needs to be lined up farther outside the OT. But since the Cards haven't had an ILB who could fill in 15 years he can't. Bye Joey.

Scofield is the Max Hall of OLBs. Hopefully he can put on another 10-15lbs without losing any of his great quickness. Otherwise he's just another guy who is too big to play Safety and too small to play OLB.

Campbell: Is going to be in the Ring of Honor. He'll still be playing for the Cards in 2017.

Williams Fat out of shape piece of horse puckey. J/K Another guy who should be with the team for years. They just don't make too many guys like him. What a solid lower body. Perfect for a NT in the 3-4

Dockett: Who knows what will happen with here today gone tomorrow Darnell? Williams could make him a perennial all-pro. Let's hope so.

Haggens Solid player but too small and too old. Need an upgrade badly. Clark had some great moments for us but it is time he joined BRobinson in the Recliner watching the Cards play on TV.

Lenon A guy who does nothing spectacular but nothing really horrible. Hopefully the Cards can replace him with someone who occasionally does something spectacular.

Washington Outstanding potential but small for an NFL LB. Hopefully the Cards can scheme to keep blockers off him and let him do what he does best, run to the football.

Toler: What can you say? He's matched McFadden stat for stat this season. But he has to get past the Cardinals curse on defensive players of 2 good plays and one bad play.

DRCWhat a clown. But what a talent. The epitome of what I said in the take on Toler. 2 fabulous plays followed by a horrible play. let's hope he matures some this off season.

Wilson A huge error giving him an extension. You don't see the Patriots or the Steelers giving extensions to 30 year old guys in their 10th season. Wilson is exactly the kind of player those teams let go. His drop off this season would tend to justify that.

RhodesThe guy can play. Bring in a bad boy leader like the Ravens have in Ray Lewis and Rhodes could be all world. Would probably do wonders for DRC as well.

 

[Duckjake]

Beanie is not done. Count on it.

Shhhh.... quit trying to ruin the Duckjake jinx. The more I say he's done the better he's going to be if you don't ruin it.

 

[juza76]

Scofield is the Max Hall of OLBs. Hopefully he can put on another 10-15lbs without losing any of his great quickness. Otherwise he's just another guy who is too big to play Safety and too small to play OLB.

''i dont think you can compare him with max hall..for sure he need to put 15 lbs but he has much more talent then max hall..anyway i think the next season he will be around 255. he was 245 in the last year of college''

 

[binkar]

Running through the roster:

Beanie Wells is done. He has no balance.
Hightower will be back. He no longer is a receiving threat but is solid in pass protection and is good at attacking the edges of the defense.
Maui'a he is one tough guy and I really like him. So he's gone. Just no place for a blocking FB in CKW's offense.
Skelator will be the QBOF. He has displayed all of the traits the other great NFL QBs had in their rookie seasons. Playing with a horsecrap bunch of WRs his work is even more impressive.
Breaston: If he signs for a reasonable contract he can stay but guys like him are a dime a dozen. We can use an upgrade here.
Roberts: Same for him.
Fitzgerald: has to stay. Regardless of his production the guy is THE face of the franchise. Give him 15% ownership if you have to but keep him in the AZ. In 55 years of watching pro sports I've never seen a more class act.
Tight End: Who cares? They are irrelevant. Just find somebody who can block.
Levi Brown: Just as I was beginning to think he was going to work out the Cards pulled a Denny Green and moved him to Left Tackle. STUPID. I don't know what to do now other than move him back.
Faneca: A real enigma. Just like the rest of the offensive line. 4 guys make great blocks and one guy blocks the wrong person. Depends on cost. Hadnot could probably do just as well so whoever is cheaper. (Sound like a Bidwill now don't I?)
Sendlein: As much as I hate to bag on a fellow Longhorn I must agree with those who say he is the weak spot in the offensive line. All the great teams have had a great Center. The C is the guy who makes the line calls. We have had far too many blown blocks over the last 3 seasons. Time to go get our own Jeff Saturday or Dan Koppen.
Lutui Forget it. One bad dude and a lifetime Cardinal fan. He can play for my Arizona team as long as he wants.
Keith Did nothing to impress me. Of course if I'd been Oline coach Bridges would be our LT and Levi would still be holding down the right side.

I'll get to the Defense in another post.

Some of these assessments are just weird...

 

[binkar]

Cards have no problem trading for players. They proved so last year. See no reason why they wouldnt trade for Kolb or Orten, assuming they liked either one that is.

No way possible they are keeping Porter on a 6 mill base salary price tag plus another 1 mill available through workout bonuses and incentives. Porter was signed as a one year experiment only.

Everything else seems very plausible besides "Brob", which Big Red already touched on, and my hatred for Robert Quinn as a NFL prospect.

Curious as to why you hate Quinn as a prospect.

 

[kerouac9]

Duck, I don't think you're watching Paris closely enough. Look back at the Panthers game and you'll see Jonathan stewart getting those long runs right through Paris Lenon arm tackles. He's not a guy that you try and replace, he's a guy you must replace if you're going to be a good defense. I think it's a mind is willing/flesh is weak thing with him. He's frequently in a position to make plays but can't close them out.

 

[Southpaw]

QB (3): 10-Marc Bulger; 19-John Skelton; 2-Richard Bartell.

Inevitable. Cards won't want to give anything up in a trade---thus forget about Kevin Kolb or Kyle Orton, for example.

Signing Donovan McNabb would be an emotional boost...especially for Fitz. But, they can sign Bulger for significantly less.

It will be announced that Bulger will battle with Skelton, Bartell and Hall for the starting job. But, this is a fait accompli---at least until Whiz feels comfortable with Skelton.

Bartell is the next St. Pierre...smart #3. They figure they wil be able to sign Max Hall to the PS.

RB (4): 34-Tim Hightower; 26-Beanie Wells; 36-LaRod Stephens-Howling; 31-Jason Wright.

Status quo here. They will want LSH to get stronger so they can play him more. They re-sign Wright for STs again.

FB (1): 45-Reagan Maui'a.

They are happy with his progress.

TE (3): 83-Stephen Spach; 81-Jim Dray; 89-Mike McNeill (6-4, 248, Nebraska, 4th round).

Spach is the B-Rob of the offense---a Whiz fave who looks real iffy on tape most of the time. The team will say they tried to re-sign Ben Patrick, but he will sign elsewhere.

OL (9): 75-Levi Brown; 70-Rex Hadnot; 63-Lyle Sendlein; 76-Deuce Lutui; 72-Brandon Keith; 73-Jeremy Bridges; 61-Steven Wisnewski (G/C, 6-3, 297, 2nd Round); 77-Jason Pinkston (LT, 6-4, 305, Pittsburgh, 3rd Round); 68-Tom Pestock.

Whiz takes a Wis---a versatile interior lineman who may be able to start right away. Pinkston would be a steal in the early 60s of the draft. Keep an eye on Texas' Kyle Hix as well.

WR (6): 11-Larry Fitzgerald; 15-Steve Breaston; 80-Early Doucet; 12-Andre Roberts; 18-Max Komar; 14-Stephen Williams.

The Cardinals may have to use the f-tag on Breaston. The hope will be to avoid that...but Breaston may follow past examples, like Karlos Dansby. Would not be surprised to see a trade involving Early Doucet, perhaps on draft day to move up.

NT (2): 97-Bryan Robinson; 92-Dan Williams.

The Cardinals obviously have a higher opinion of B-Rob than any of us can figure out. By de-activating Gabe Watson so frequently, the team and he obviously are in the process of parting ways. Don't be surprised if Robinson is starting the first game---especially if Bill Davis is still the DC---which at this point looks more likely than not.

DE (4): 90-Darnell Dockett; 93-Calais Campbell; 91-Kenny Iwebema; 96-Ronald Talley.

Do you really think Alan "I'd just as soon be a substitute DE than NT starter" Branch is going to re-sign with the Cardinals? He has been auditioning for his next gig, which will be---in all likelihood---with the Eagles or Patriots.

There could be a draft pick here depending on what Kenny Iwebema's prognosis is.

ILB (4): 52-D'Qwell Jackson; 58-Daryl Washington; 51-Paris Lenon; 56-Reggie Walker.

McCreight goes hard for Jackson and gets him.

OLB (5): 53-Clark Haggans; 55-Joey Porter; 58-Will Davis; 50-O'Brien Schofield; 42-Robert Quinn (6-5, 270, North Carolina, 1st round)

This week Kerry Rhodes was exclaiming we are a "couple of pieces away" from being a great defense. Well, the Cardinals will gamble that Quinn didn't lose much after a year off and that he is one of the main pieces they need.

CB (5): 29-Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie; 23-Eric Wright; 28-Greg Toler; 27-Michael Adams; 20-A.J. Jefferson.

McCreight hops all over Eric Wright---who struggled a tad more than usual this year, but has very good skills and is still young. Gives the team excellent depth and talent at the position. Keep an eye on A.J. Jefferson too, who has great physical talents.

S (4): 24-Adrian Wilson; 25-Kerry Rhodes; 49-Rashad Johnson; 44-Jaiquawn Jarrett (6-2, 197, Temple, 5th Round).

The team may make a push to sign UFA Dashawn Goldson...the kind of hitter/enforcer/role player complement they need. But, if he signs elsewhere, they go ahead and draft Jarrett.

ST (3): 3-Jay Feely; 5-Ben Graham; 82-Mike Leach.

Three of the very best at their jobs...although Graham slipped a little this year.

These are the choices I believe the Cardinals will make. I don't necessarily agree with all of them...so please spare me the ad hominems. Thank you! Nah...go ahead...blast away!!!

This proposed roster is a 3rd place finish, in the division, at best. Do not like the Quinn draft choice. Trade down for a need or take BPA in that higher slot. Top ten picks should be BPA. If you don't want BPA that high, trade down for multi picks and then take need.

 

[Duckjake]

Some of these assessments are just weird...

Why not elaborate? Why are they weird? Tell us what you think of the current first 22.

Don't hide, we won't bite.

 

[binkar]

Why not elaborate? Why are they weird? Tell us what you think of the current first 22.

Don't hide, we won't bite.

Wells- I simply don't understand how you can say the guy is done. Has he been what we hoped for this year? No. However, he shows significant flashes of power and production. He does seem to slip more than he should, but he still flashes the ability to be an above average back. The running game as a whole has been a disappointment this year. This includes the backs, o-line, and play calling.

Hightower- How can you claim he is no longer a receiving threat? Just last year he caught over 60 balls. Just because our atrocious QB play has prevented him from catching a bunch of balls doesn't mean he has lost the ability to do so.

Maui'a- Whiz continues to use a FB. If he had no need for one, why would he waste a roster spot on one?

Breaston- Guys like him are dime-a-dozen? He is tough, pretty sure-handed, and is extremely productive when healthy. He has been banged up a majority of the season. He has also played with 3 QBs this year. None-of-which should be starting QBs, and 2 of which shouldn't even be on NFL rosters (Hall and Anderson).

Roberts- You want to get rid of a guy who has shown HUGE strides in his ROOKIE season? This is weird. The guy came from the Citadel and is playing a position that is widely considered one of the most difficult to adjust to in the NFL.

Tight Ends- Tight Ends are irrelevant? Are you kidding me? A good TE can make a HUGE difference for an offense. Ours are absolutely terrible. Probably the worst in the NFL.

 

[binkar]

Mitch,

Good stuff here. Unlike many, I like the Quinn draft choice (though a lot could change between now and April). He is extremely talented, and is known to be an extremely hard worker. I think people automatically assume he has character problems due to the suspension, which isn't really accurate.

That said, I don't expect to see Robinson, Porter, Spach, or Komar back. At least I hope not.