Posts tagged "Javier Arenas"

NFL 2010 Camp Preview: Kansas City Chiefs

With new coordinators in place Todd Haley and the Kansas City Chiefs enter the summer looking to build on last year's four win season. Eric Engberg checks in with what to expect in KC this summer.

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NFL: State of the AFC West

With the draft in the books it is time to start looking at how the divisions are beginning to stack up as we head into off season workouts. Eric Engberg is here with a brief overview of the AFC West.

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2010 NFL Draft: Breaking Down the AFC West

With the 2010 NFL Draft in the books it is time to look at the winners and losers. Eric Engberg breaks down how the teams in the AFC West fared in this year's draft.

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2010 NFL Mock Draft 2.0, Round 3

With Rounds one and two in the books round three of the NFL Mock Draft has been updated. Check out which players are on the rise and which one have slipped a bit in the third round.

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2010 NFL Mock Draft 1.0 Round 3

PopPickle’s Eric Engberg takes a stab at how he sees the third round of the upcoming NFL Draft unfolding. Does Tim Tebow finally come off the board in this round?

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Arizona Cardinals

Overview

After losing two of three to start the season the the Cards righted the ship winning ten ball games and the NFC West by two games over the Forty Niners.  The Cardinals lost to the New Orleans Saints in the Divisional round of the playoffs and currently sit at the 26 spot in the draft.

Assets

Chris “Beanie” Wells and Tim Hightower give the Cardinals a strong one-two punch at running back.  They combined for 15 rushing touchdowns, however, they also fumbled the ball a combined 10 times this season.  Wells has the talent to be a premiere back in the league if he can just stay healthy.  Hightower is one of the more versatile backs in the league and caught 63 passes out of the back field.  With Kurt Warner deciding to retire Wells and Hightower are likely to be featured more in the offense next season.

The receiving corps does not get any better than Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin, and Steve Breaston.  Boldin and Fitzgerald posted 1,000 yard seasons while Breaston is just a season removed from a 1,000 yard season of his own.

Defensively, the Cards have some real play makers in DL Darnell Dockett, Karlos Dansby, Domonique Rodgers-Cromartie, and Adrian Wilson.    Dockett, Rodgers-Cromartie, and Wilson were all elected to the Pro Bowl this year.

Last season’s playoff run for Dockett was a jumping off spot for him.  He has built on that momentum and is going to the second Pro Bowl of his career.  While Dockett is listed as a DT he has been lining up more as an end in the Cards 3-4 front to utilize his pass rushing skills.  Dockett tied for the team lead with 7 sacks and 10 tackles behind the line of scrimmage.

Moving Antrel Rolle to safety has paid off for the Cards and along with Adrian Wilson Arizona has one of the better safety pairings in the league.

Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie is considered a rising star at corner but has struggled at times to stay healthy.

Liabilities/Needs

With Warner retiring quarterback now becomes a big question mark in Arizona.  Do they go with the Leinart or go out and get an established veteran to compete for the starting job?

The corner position opposite Rodgers-Cromartie has left something to be desired the past couple of years and the defense has not been up to snuff in terms of pass defense.

The pass rush is solid but it does not have that disruptive force that teams have to game plan around a-la a DeMarcus Ware or James Harrison.

The emergence of DE Calais Campbell this season has lessened the need for pass rushing help, but, Chike Okafor, Bertrand Berry, and Clark Haggans, whom the team relies upon to pressure the quarterback are all on the wrong side of 30 and the Cardinals need to look for young talent to replace them in the next year or two.

The outside linebackers leave something to be desired.

The offensive line is decent but could use improvement, especially if they are looking at someone else other than Warner as the quarterback next season.  Warner’s uncanny ability to unload the ball in the blink of an eye helps mask some of the team’s short-comings in pass protection.

They have also been searching for a solution at tight end but one begins to wonder if Warner just has no use for the tight end given how many they have gone through the past few years.

How the Draft Might Shake Out

There is still no real consensus as to whether Leinart is ever going to amount to much in the NFL.  They could go with a quarterback if they do not feel Leinart is the guy and one of the two first rounders, Jimmy Clausen and Sam Bradford, falls to them.

If they do go offense and it is not a quarterback the team would likely look at the best available offensive lineman or grab Oklahoma tight end Jermaine Gresham.  The team has been searching for a quality tight end for several years but have never worried too much about it since Warner has never utilized his tight ends very often.

If  the Cards go defense, which they probably should given some of their defensive shortcomings, look for them to opt for the best available linebacker, defensive tackle, or corner back.  The team is only adequate at nose tackle and outside linebacker, and they need a corner to lineup opposite Rodgers-Cromartie.

Penn State’s Navorro Bowman and Texas’ Sergio Kindle are considered late first round prospects at OLB and could be there when the Cards pick.  Michigan’s Brandon Graham is seen as a potential OLB at the NFL level and is quickly moving up draft boards.

Tennessee’s Dan Williams and Penn State’s Jared Odrick are a couple of DT prospects being rated as late first round prospects and could end up in Arizona.  Odrick seems the more likely of the two as he is taller and therefore more suited to play the nose tackle position in the NFL.

Boise corner back Kyle Wilson’s stock is rising after a solid week at the Senior Bowl and could sneak into the tail end of the first round.  Wilson is not thought of as someone who will be a shut down corner in the NFL, but, he would be a good fit as the #2 corner opposite Rodgers-Cromartie.

With pass rushing specialist Bertrand Berry announcing his retirement (1/21/10) and Chike Okeafor entering his 12th season in the league Clemson pass rusher Ricky Sapp could be a possibility here as well.  Sapp played end in college but has some experience lining up at OLB in a 3-4 front and with his size and speed he projects more as a rush linebacker in a 3-4 scheme at the next level.

West Viriginia’s Selvish Capers is someone the Cards could look at in the second round to help upgrade the tackle position that has been spotty in terms of pass protection the past couple of years.

Florida’s Aaron Hernandez could be targeted as the pass catching TE they need in the second round.

Virginia’s Chris Cook is a tall corner that is expected to go late in the second round that would provide a nice compliment to Rodgers-Cromartie.

The Cardinals still do not know if Matt Leinart is going to be a bust or not.  He has been fairly inconsistent when given playing time and it is rumored that he may be dealt this spring.  It seems unlikely they would target a quarterback in the first round but do not be surprised if they grab someone like a Colt McCoy, Tim Hiller, or Tony Pike if they are there when the Cards select in the second or third rounds.

This spring’s draft also looks to be fairly deep on talent at the corner positions so look for the Cards to target a corner back in the first three rounds as well.  Michigan’s Donovan Warren or Cal’s Syd’Quan Thompson could be possible targets for the Cards as solutions at corner back in the second round.  Alabama’s Javier Arenas is on the smallish side but he has great speed and is a play-maker at corner.

Given how well second year receiver Early Doucet played down the stretch and in the playoffs for Arizona and the assumption they are moving to a more run-oriented offense next season it would not be at all surprising to see the Cards deal Boldin for an extra early round draft pick or two.  It is thought the asking price has come down to a second round pick in exchange for Boldin.  Given the dearth of talent available at the position this spring there are several teams that would probably be willing to part with a second round pick for Boldin’s services.

Click Here for a Review of Arizona’s Recent Draft History