Cardinals Down To 77 After Cuts
The Cardinals announced a flurry of moves, bringing them close to the 75-man roster limit. The complete list is below.
Waived:
- G Jake Bernstein
- WR Amir Carlisle
- TE Gerald Christian
- OT Clay DeBord
- LS Daniel Dillon
- DT Iosia Iosia
- CB Asa Jackson
- WR Franky Okafor
- CB Shaun Prater
- P Garrett Swanson
- S Tyrequek Zimmerman
Waived/Injured:
- QB Jake Coker (knee)
IR:
- CB Mike Jenkins (story)
With Dillon out of the picture, Kameron Canaday has ostensibly won the Cardinals’ long snapper job.
Cardinals’ Mike Jenkins Done For Season
Cardinals cornerback Mike Jenkins is done for the season, coach Bruce Arians told reporters just moments ago. The cardinals signed Jenkins in mid-July with the hope that he could provide the team with additional depth at the position. Unfortunately, he suffered a broken bone in his hand less than two weeks later. He returned to action in August only to tear his ACL. 
Jenkins, 31, had been sitting on the open market since his contract with the Buccaneers expired in March. He spent the past two seasons in Tampa, although he appeared in only 15 total games, as his 2014 campaign was wiped out by a pectoral injury. Save for one year with the Raiders, the rest of Jenkins’ action came with the Cowboys, the club that made him a first-round pick back in 2008. All told, Jenkins has 101 games (68 starts) under his belt, and has posted 10 interceptions during his career.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Broncos Shopping Britton Colquitt
6:39pm: The Broncos are now gauging trade interest in Colquitt, according to Klis, who lists the Vikings, Cardinals, Panthers, and Bears as plausible suitors for Colquitt.
5:56pm: The Broncos have asked punter Britton Colquitt to accept a pay cut, according to Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post. Vic Lombardi of Altitude Sports (Twitter link) was the first to report that Denver was discussing a restructure with Colquitt.
[RELATED — Gary Kubiak: Experience will have “zero” impact on Broncos’ QB competition]
Colquitt, 31, is scheduled to earn a $3.75MM base salary, and will count $4MM against the Broncos’ salary cap. If Colquitt refuses a pay decrease and is released, Denver would take on $750K in dead money on its 2016 cap. For what it’s worth, Colquitt told Lombardi (Twitter link) that expects the Broncos to cut either him or sixth-round rookie Riley Dixon today or tomorrow, as Colquitt doesn’t think the club would carry two punters into the final preseason game.
Colquitt didn’t play in Saturday night’s preseason game against the Rams, as the Broncos told him before the contest that Dixon would handle punt and holding duties. “Usually they tell you a little sooner but I knew all week that could be a possibility,’’ Colquitt told Mike Klis of 9NEWS. “I’ve only punted six times (in the first two preseason games), he had only punted five times. You can’t take a chance on somebody if you haven’t seen him punt. I had a feeling that would probably happen, which is fine.’’
After accepting a pay cut prior to last season and lowering his base salary by about $1.4MM, Colquitt proceeded to appear in all 16 games, averaging 39.7 net yards per punt, good for only 20th in the NFL.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Shaq Riddick Has Torn Oblique
- Cardinals linebacker Shaq Riddick has a torn oblique and is facing an uncertain timetable, Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com tweets. Riddick didn’t play a single snap after being selected in the fifth-round of the 2015 draft, and wasn’t even on the gameday active roster until December. However, Arizona has expressed faith in Riddick (and the club’s other young edge rushers), and had refrained from re-signing Dwight Freeney in the hopes of handing more snaps to its more youthful players. Riddick isn’t the only Cards defender dealing with an injury, as fellow linebacker Alex Okafor is set to play through a biceps tear.
- Once roster cutdowns begin over the course of the next few weeks, the Cardinals could be looking for help at cornerback, offensive tackle, and linebacker, according to Mike Jurecki of FOX Sports 910 (Twitter link). Linebacker is an obvious area of need given the injuries to Riddick and Okafor, and Arizona’s depth at corner is depleted, even when counting its recent signings of Mike Jenkins (who is hurt) and Alan Ball. Swing tackle is another area of concern, and the Cards have been linked to free agent Will Beatty.
- Cardinals linebacker Shaq Riddick has a torn oblique and is facing an uncertain timetable, Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com tweets. Riddick didn’t play a single snap after being selected in the fifth-round of the 2015 draft, and wasn’t even on the gameday active roster until December. However, Arizona has expressed faith in Riddick (and the club’s other young edge rushers), and had refrained from re-signing Dwight Freeney in the hopes of handing more snaps to its more youthful players. Riddick isn’t the only Cards defender dealing with an injury, as fellow linebacker Alex Okafor is set to play through a biceps tear.
- Once roster cutdowns begin over the course of the next few weeks, the Cardinals could be looking for help at cornerback, offensive tackle, and linebacker, according to Mike Jurecki of FOX Sports 910 (Twitter link). Linebacker is an obvious area of need given the injuries to Riddick and Okafor, and Arizona’s depth at corner is depleted, even when counting its recent signings of Mike Jenkins (who is hurt) and Alan Ball. Swing tackle is another area of concern, and the Cards have been linked to free agent Will Beatty.
- In case you missed it, PFR spoke with Will Leitch about the Cardinals‘ offseason and the season ahead.
The Beat: Will Leitch On The Cardinals
With the season fast approaching, we’re chatting with writers and columnists from around the league to gain insight on each team’s offseason and how those moves will impact the season ahead.
Now, we continue the series by discussing the Cardinals with Will Leitch. Will is a senior writer for Sports on Earth, a contributing editor for New York Magazine, and hosts the daily podcast “The Will Leitch Experience.” You can follow Will on Twitter @WilliamFLeitch.
Zach Links: Like many Cardinals fans, you were puzzled by Carson Palmer‘s collapse in last season’s playoffs. This offseason, the Cardinals tied themselves to the veteran through 2018 with an extension. How do you feel about Palmer as the Cards’ QB heading into this season? 
Will Leitch: Yeah, he was a nightmare in the playoffs, like he’d forgotten everything that had made him and the team great throughout the season. You’d actually seen that in the Packers game, some dunderheaded mistakes that weren’t indicative of how he played in the regular season, but I thought it was attributable to him still not having that playoff-victory monkey off his back. And then he was ten times worse against Carolina. So, yeah, it’s worrisome, but not NEARLY as worrisome as it would have been if Palmer hadn’t have come back, or if he gets hurt. Palmer is the perfect fit for this offense — the only thing that isn’t perfect is that he isn’t 27 — but more to the point, he’s the only available fit for this offense. As bad as the playoffs were, the team would be completely lost without him. I’m terrified that he goes down in Week Two and the whole team implodes. The Cardinals have had some truly awful quarterbacking over the last decade; I’m twitching just thinking about it. No offense to Drew Stanton, but yes: Palmer is the whole sandwich here.
Continue reading our Q&A with Will Leitch..
Four New Teams Interested In Keenan Lewis
The Lions, Jets, Cardinals and an unidentified NFC South team have made preliminary inquiries on Keenan Lewis, according to Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Earlier today, we learned that at least six teams have shown interest in Lewis, including the Steelers who will be hosting Lewis on a visit. 
The Lions are quite young at cornerback with 25-year-olds Darius Slay and Nevin Lawson in starting roles. Behind them are Quandre Diggs (24), Alex Carter (22), Darrin Walls (28), and Crezdon Butler (29). The 30-year-old Lewis could bring some veteran experience to a group that lost Rashean Mathis to retirement in the offseason.
Lewis says that he is particularly intrigued by the possibility of joining the Jets or Cardinals (link):
“I wouldn’t mind playing with (Darrelle) Revis. Bruce Arians was also coaching with the Steelers when I was there. I wouldn’t mind playing with Patrick Peterson too. Those teams are only getting stronger. I just want to put myself in the best situation. I want to play two to three more years and my goal is to win a Super Bowl.”
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Alex Okafor To Play Through Biceps Tear
SUNDAY: Okafor will not undergo surgery and will instead play through the injury, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.
SATURDAY: For the second time in his four-year career, Alex Okafor has a choice regarding how he’ll handle a torn biceps tendon. It will decide his season and will impact the Cardinals’ pass-rushing corps.
Okafor is mulling whether or not to undergo surgery after tearing his biceps tendon at a recent practice, Mike Jurecki of Fox Sports 910 reports (on Twitter). Bruce Arians confirmed the news after the Cardinals’ second preseason game on Friday night.
As Jurecki points out, a surgical course of action ends the fourth-year pass-rusher’s season. There remains a chance Okafor could attempt to rest and play through it, if he opts against. Faced with the same decision in September of 2013, Okafor opted for surgery and missed 15 games.
The Cardinals preferred to go with their homegrown pass-rushers despite Dwight Freeney‘s preference to return to Arizona this offseason. Freeney signed with the Falcons, leaving the Cardinals with an Okafor- and Markus Golden-fronted crew of internal options.
Now, the Cardinals have recent mid-round picks Shaquille Riddick and Kareem Martin, as Roster Resource shows, with UDFAs immediately behind them.
Okafor missed the Cardinals’ two playoff games in January after landing on the NFI list with a toe malady. He missed three regular-season games in each of the past two years as well. He showed promise in 2014, registering eight sacks to lead the Cardinals in his first year as a starter. Pro Football Focus graded Okafor as a middle-of-the-pack defender in 2015.
Mike Neal, Calvin Pace and Jason Babin, whom the Cardinals signed in January in the wake of Okafor venturing to IR, are among the veteran 3-4 outside linebacker options available in free agency.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Panthers To Work Out Will Beatty
10:13am: Beatty is also on the Cardinals’ radar, Mike Jurecki of FOX Sports 910 (on Twitter) hears.
9:22am: Will Beatty will work out for the Panthers today, according to a source who spoke with Newsday’s Tom Rock. Beatty already has an offer from the Jaguars in hand, but he is apparently checking out other options first. 
The Jaguars recently worked out Beatty and the Eagles are also said to have him on their radar as they brace for Lane Johnson‘s ten-game suspension. Still, Rock hears that a reunion with the Giants remains unlikely.
Beatty, 31, is hoping to sign with a team that will give him a starting job, the source said. The Panthers have Michael Oher to start at left tackle, but the team may not be inspired by Daryl Williams and Mike Remmers on the right side. Williams hasn’t pushed Remmers like they hoped he would and Beatty could be a more attractive option.
The veteran missed the entire 2015 campaign after tearing his pectoral, and was released by New York following the season. Still, Beatty missed only one game in the three seasons prior to 2015 and he is said to be fully healthy. PFR ranked Beatty as one of the best offensive free agents still on the board earlier this year. Since that time, five of the six players listed ahead of Beatty have found new deals.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Cardinals, Chargers To Talk Trade?
Could the Cardinals and Chargers hammer out a trade? The Cards have some question marks at tackle and cornerback and GM Steve Keim says he isn’t inspired by the options currently available on the open market. At the same time, he says he’ll meet with Bolts GM Tom Telesco this week when the two teams have their joint practices, as Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com writes. He expects they’ll discuss their respective rosters and deficiencies, in hopes they can ask each other, “Hey, is there an area where we can help each other improve?’”
Cardinals Sign Tyrequek Zimmerman
- The Cardinals announced that they’ve waived/injured safety Durell Eskridge and re-signed safety Tyrequek Zimmerman.