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Arizona Cardinals News & Rumors

Cardinals Looking To Move Up In Draft

April 24th, 2018 at 3:07pm CST by Zachary Links

As of this writing, the Cardinals are set to pick at No. 15 overall. That might not be the case when the draft rolls around on Thursday. The Cardinals are “making a lot of noise about moving up,” Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. 

The Cardinals signed Sam Bradford to be their starting quarterback in 2018 and Mike Glennon is on hand as a backstop. In the long term, however, Arizona needs to consider the future of the QB position. At No. 15, the Cardinals are unlikely to land any of this year’s top four QBs, but they could be in range for one of them if they move up into the top 10. To solidify the possibility of landing Sam Darnold, Josh Allen, Baker Mayfield, or Josh Rosen, they may need to go as high as No. 5 or No. 6.

Of course, the Cardinals have other major needs to address in the draft, including finding a cornerback and wide receiver to pair with star Patrick Peterson. Cornerbacks such as Minkah Fitzpatrick and Denzel Ward could be available if the Cards can find their way into the back half of the top 10. They could also be pressured into moving up for a wide receiver like Alabama’s Calvin Ridley or Maryland’s D.J. Moore, though one or both of those players could be on the board at their original pick.

Cardinals To Exercise Fifth-Year Option on D.J. Humphries

April 23rd, 2018 at 8:06pm CST by Micah Powell

The Cardinals are expected to exercise the fifth-year option in left tackle D.J. Humphries‘ contract, AZ Central’s Kent Somers writes. 

Taken with the 24th pick in the 2015 NFL Draft, Humphries will be owed $9.625MM in 2019 with Arizona exercising the option.

The move isn’t a surprising one, as the Cardinals have been impressed with Humphries’ progress at the position after picking it up in 2017. Though he shows solid potential, he has had trouble staying on the field.

He was inactive for every game as a rookie and began the following season at right tackle before moving to the opposite side of the line. After playing in 13 games in 2016, Humphries was limited to just five games in 2017 after suffering a knee injury against the 49ers in November.

He underwent surgery to repair a torn MCL and dislocated knee cap and expects to return to the field at the start of the 2018 season.

Cardinals Sign DE Benson Mayowa

April 23rd, 2018 at 11:34am CST by Zachary Links

The Cardinals have signed defensive end Benson Mayowa, according to a team press release. Mayowa has been on the market since early March when he was released by the Cowboys. It’s a one-year, $1.6MM deal, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter).

Mayowa has five seasons under his belt after spending time with the Seahawks, Raiders, and Cowboys. Statistically, his best season came in 2016 when he notched six sacks with Dallas. Last year, he had just 31 tackles and one sack in 381 snaps.

The Cardinals are moving from a 3-4 look to a 4-3 under Steve Wilks and Al Holcomb, both of whom oversaw parts of the Panthers’ 4-3 scheme over the past several years. Mayowa has played as a 4-3 end throughout his NFL career and Arizona believes that he’ll be a strong fit for their front seven.

Arizona already has edge rushers Chandler Jones, Markus Golden, and Robert Nkemdiche in the mix, but Mayowa could be in for a sizable role if Jones and Golden spend the bulk of their time at outside linebacker.

Seahawks Won't Trade Thomas To Cards

April 22nd, 2018 at 7:07pm CST by Sam Robinson

Despite the Seahawks expecting Earl Thomas not to hold out, they still have him on the trade block, John Clayton of ESPN said during a radio appearance with KESN in Dallas (via the Dallas Morning News). Clayton added that the Seahawks would likely be willing to move their three-time All-Pro safety for less than a first-round pick, indicating they would probably trade Thomas for a package featuring second- and fourth-round selections and perhaps something in the 2019 draft. Clayton indicates the Cardinals could use a free safety but that the Seahawks were not going to trade Thomas to an NFC West team. The Cowboys moving Byron Jones to cornerback would open a spot there, and Thomas was vocal about being receptive to a Dallas deal, and they strike Clayton as the top suitor for the 28-year-old defender’s services.

Extra Points: Brothers, Edmunds, Kirk, Marshall, Poll

April 21st, 2018 at 9:24pm CST by Ryan Posner

Vikings linebacker Kentrell Brothers released a statement following his four-game suspension by the NFL for violating its policy on performance-enhancing drugs, via Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

“While it was not my intention to violate any league policies, I understand that it is up to me to be aware of what goes in my body, and I take full responsibility for that. I sincerely apologize to the Vikings organization, my teammates and our fans for my mistake. I take my job as a professional seriously and will continue to support my teammates during this time.”

It has still yet to be revealed what Brothers, a fifth-round pick in 2016, tested positive for. He’ll be able to take part in the team’s entire offseason program, including preseason practices and games.

Brothers appeared in just nine defensive snaps in 2017 but was also a contributor on special teams.

Here’s more from around the NFL:

  • Virginia Tech linebacker Tremaine Edmunds is nearly a lock to be taken in the first round of the upcoming draft. But Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports (on Twitter) has been hearing that his older brother, Terrell Edmunds, a safety from Virginia Tech, could also go in the first round.
  • While at a charity event Saturday in Phoenix hosted by Larry Fitzgerald, Texas A&M wide receiver Christian Kirk said he’d visited with the Cardinals, who hold the No. 15 overall pick of the upcoming draft, via Mike Jurecki (on Twitter).
  • Free-agent wide receiver Brandon Marshall, who was recently released by the Giants, was also at the charity event and declined comment on his free agency, via Jurecki (on Twitter).
  • USA Today’s Jarrett Bell and Lindsay H. Jones polled 25 agents from around the league on a variety of topics when it comes to dealing with NFL front offices. The 49ers graded out at No. 1 when it came to which team was most prepared in free agency and the Bengals graded out as the worst. Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome was graded to be the most-trusted executive and Redskins president Bruce Allen was found to be trusted the least.

Josh Allen Visited Cardinals

April 20th, 2018 at 6:04pm CST by Sam Robinson

With the draft less than a week away, visit season has concluded. But Josh Allen said in a recent interview he’d visited seven teams — one more than previously reported. During an appearance on the Pro Football Talk PM Podcast (via ArizonaSports.com’s Mike Jurecki, on Twitter), Allen revealed he visited the Cardinals.

Allen confirmed his previously reported itinerary of meetings with the Browns, Giants, Jets, Broncos, Dolphins and Bills. Holding the No. 15 selection, the Cardinals pick lowest of any team that hosted the Wyoming passer. However, they lack a long-term answer at quarterback.

The Cardinals also met with Baker Mayfield during the visit window but are not believed to have brought in Josh Rosen, who may be set to be the fourth quarterback chosen in this draft and thus at a juncture where the Cardinals would be in reasonable trade range to acquire him. Allen, conversely, has a decent chance of being the No. 1 overall pick. At this point, it could be assumed it would take more trade ammo to move up to land Allen than it would for Rosen.

Arizona signed Sam Bradford and Mike Glennon in March while also submitting April waiver claims for Brandon Doughty and Alek Torgersen. None of these players figure to be in the long-term starter mix, however.

NFC West Notes: ‘Hawks, Thomas, Kaep

April 20th, 2018 at 12:45pm CST by Zachary Links

Seahawks GM John Schneider says he has not talked to Earl Thomas‘ representatives since the combine, Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times tweets. However, Schneider added that is not unusual. Despite his name being floated in trade rumors this offseason, the GM says that he hopes to have Thomas on the roster when the season begins.

Here’s more from the NFC West:

Wilks Likes Sam Bradford's Current Form

April 19th, 2018 at 8:07pm CST by Sam Robinson
  • While the Cardinals are going to ease Sam Bradford into action this offseason, Steve Wilks likes the early form the would-be starter is in. “I didn’t see anything (bad) out of his knee. Not one thing,” Wilks said, via Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com. “Nothing is wrong with his knee. I thought he threw the ball well, ball-handling, he handed the ball off, rolled out, bootleg, all those things. He’s doing everything we ask him to do. We just want to make sure we don’t put too much on him too soon.” Bradford wore a brace on his troublesome left knee early in the week before shifting to a sleeve, per Urban.

Dwight Freeney Retires From NFL

April 19th, 2018 at 3:56pm CST by Zachary Links

Dwight Freeney is calling it a career. After 16 seasons in the NFL, Freeney will sign a one-day contract with Indianapolis to retire as a member of the Colts. 

Freeney entered the league as the No. 11 pick in the 2002 NFL Draft. Since then, he has racked up seven Pro Bowl nods, three first-team All-Pro selections, and a Super Bowl ring.

Freeney, 38, will be best remembered for his time in blue and white, where he amassed 107. 5 sacks across eleven seasons. All in all, he has 125.5 career sacks to his credit, tying him for 17th all-time in NFL history.

The Colts averaged 11 wins per year during Freeney’s run with the Colts and had 11 sacks in his 22 playoff games with the team. Many thought the Colts were reaching when they selected Freeney in ’02, but he turned out to be the perfect fit for first-year head coach Tony Dungy.

“Bill [Polian] had seen Dwight and thought he was exactly the guy I had been talking about,” Dungy said of Freeney. “We’re sitting at No. 11 in the first round and people looked at his size and thought it was too high to draft him. Bill, to his credit, said, ‘If this is going to be the big piece of the puzzle, let’s not worry about where we take Dwight and what other people think. Let’s get the guy who is going to be the perfect piece.’ Dwight was the straw that stirred the drink.”

The Syracuse product played in three Super Bowls — two with the Colts, one with the Falcons — and started in 19 postseason games. All seven of Freeney’s double-digit sack seasons came with the Colts.

Following his Colts run, which ran through the 2012 season, Freeney played with five more teams. His most notable post-Indianapolis season came with the 2015 Cardinals, for whom he registered eight sacks and helped to the NFC title game despite being an off-the-bench edge rusher. He recorded three sacks in each of the past two seasons, playing in Atlanta, Seattle and Detroit. Prior to Arizona, Freeney spent two seasons in San Diego.

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