The Arizona Cardinals are expected to be one of the worst teams in the NFL this season. Following the Steve Keim and Kliff Kingsbury debacle that ensued, the team is now under first-year GM Monti Ossenfort and first-year head coach Jonathan Gannon.
With new leadership in place, the Cardinals seem to be looking to rebuild their roster, and what’s the fastest way to do that?
TANK!
Is Arizona Tanking For Caleb Williams?
That’s what it looks like they’re attempting to do in the Valley of the Sun.
This week the team traded former first-round pick Isaiah Simmons to the Giants for a seventh-round pick. Cards brass also announced that quarterback Kyler Murray will begin the season on the PUP list as he recovers from a torn ACL, meaning he’ll miss the first four games of the season, and likely more.
On Tuesday the team cut projected starter Colt McCoy, who’s been taking most of the snaps all offseason with Murray down.
The team signed journeyman Josh Dobbs last week, and as of now he’s in line to start their season opener at the Washington Commanders pretty much with two weeks of preparation. All of these reeks of a tank job.
With reigning Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams expected to be the top overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft, the Cardinals seem to be trying to position themselves to grab that top pick. Williams has drawn many comparisons to two-time Super Bowl and NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes.
In fact, former Super Bowl MVP Phil Simms, who’s now an NFL analyst with CBS, recently mentioned that the team’s offseason moves have tank for Williams written all over them.
Cardinals Positioning To Move On From Kyler Murray?
Are the Cardinals ready to move on from 2019 No. 1 overall pick Kyler Murray? It sure seems plausible when you consider the way they’re moving.
And let’s not forget Murray isn’t the new regime’s signal-caller, and with the diminutive former Heisman winner coming off a torn ACL, and not having the greatest track record as a teammate, Arizona may be ready to go in another direction with their future.
Which would be crazy considering they just paid him a king’s ransom to be “their Aaron Rodgers.”
With 11 picks in the 2024 draft, including two first-round, one second-round and three third-round picks, the Cards control the draft. That’s 6 of the first 100 picks and it’s as good an opportunity as ever to rebuild their roster without splurging frivolously on free agents.
During a conference call on Monday with fellow “NFL on CBS” analysts, Simms got the ball rolling on what he believes is going on in Arizona.
“Arizona looks as it they’re trying to get a certain situation to get a quarterback. It’s hard to make a case they’re not trying to tank.”
Boomer Esiason, the 1988 NFL MVP, piggybacked on what Simms said.
“From where I sit right now, it’s probably, in terms of quarterback rooms, the 32nd in the NFL. This is a start over, and I guess you have to use the word ‘tank.”
Cowher And J.J Watt Chimed In
Former Steelers Super Bowl-winning coach Bill Cowher agreed with his colleagues that he shares the CBS set with weekly. But he also spoke from a front office standpoint as well.
“I’d sacrifice this year to get the future of this franchise.”
Cowher also added that if the Cardinals pull this off if could change the current draft format. The Hall of Fame coach mentioned that a draft lottery could be next.
That would then give teams less incentive to tank seasons.
Even future Hall of Famer J.J. Watt, who joined the crew this season following retirement, spoke about it.
The former three-time DPOY came from a player’s standpoint, and a lot of those players in the Cards locker room are his former teammates. Watt says he “feels bad” for those guys, because they’re about to be part of a team trying to lose on purpose to land a better draft pick.
