Miles Killebrew Set To Meet With Cardinals
- Southern Utah safety Miles Killebrew is generating plenty of interest around the league, tweets Bleacher Report’s Luke Easterling. The defensive back is set to meet with the Buccaneers, Panthers, Titans, Cardinals, Patriots, and Falcons.
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Rashad Johnson Wanted To Re-Sign With Cardinals
The Bears’ excellent cap situation (nearly $24MM in space) and the importance of having quality edge rushers are two reasons the team won’t release either Lamarr Houston or Willie Young, as Adam Jahns of the Chicago Sun-Times writes.
On Houston, who had a career-high eight sacks in 2015, general manager Ryan Pace said, ‘‘He came on strong. Luckily, we’re in a healthy cap situation, so we can [keep him on the roster].”
Houston’s $6.99MM cap hold is the Bears’ fourth-highest total for 2016, while the $3.17MM hit for Young (6.5 sacks last season) is more modest. One anonymous AFC executive opined last month that Houston was a candidate for the chopping block, but it now appears he’s safe.
Regarding Houston and Young, who combined for 12.5 sacks over the final nine games last season, head coach John Fox stated, “Obviously, I like those guys.”
The fact that Houston and Young seem to have the approval of Bears brass doesn’t mean the club will eschew pursuing more pass rushers via the draft, per Jahns. On the contrary, they’d like to add speed off the edge. Speed isn’t the strongest suit of Houston, Young or Pernell McPhee, Jahns notes.
In other NFC news…
- Washington re-signed Junior Galette to a one-year deal because of the uncertainty surrounding Galette’s ability to re-emerge from the torn Achilles’ tendon that shelved him for the 2015 season, Tarik El-Bashir of CSNMidAtlantic.com. “Well, we’ve got to see, coming off an injury at any part of your body,” GM Scot McCloughan said. “But the Achilles for a guy’s explosion? It’s going to be interesting. That’s why the one-year deal from our standpoint made sense because, you know, does he still have the same twitch? Does he still have the same ability to get up field? I believe he does.” Galette’s contract doesn’t contain any guaranteed money. The 28-year-old pass-rusher notched 10 sacks for the Saints when last healthy in 2014, with current Washington edge-rushing counterpart Ryan Kerrigan registering a career-high 13.5 the same season.
- Before agreeing to a deal with Tennessee on Friday, safety Rashad Johnson spent the first seven years of his NFL career in Arizona. If the 30-year-old had it his way, he’d still be a member of the Cardinals. Johnson told Zig Fracassi of Sirius-XM NFL Radio that he wanted to re-sign with the Cards, but they didn’t make him an offer (Twitter link).
- The NFL’s decision to move touchbacks from the 20-yard line to the 25 next season should have an adverse effect on return men. Devin Hester, one of the all-time great returners, could be an exception. The Falcons might continue to turn him loose, according to head coach Dan Quinn. “There are special players like Dev and other returners around the league, they’ll still get green-lighted. Here’s a guy who is on the club for this unique reason,” Quinn told D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The 33-year-old Hester missed all but five games last season because of a toe injury, but he has since had surgery on it and is currently rehabbing.
Sam Robinson contributed to this post.
Boivin: Cardinals Should Select QB In First Round
- “Quality” quarterbacks can be found towards the end of the first round, leading Paola Boivin of AZCentral.com to write that the Cardinals should select a signal-caller with their first selection in this year’s draft. Boivin believes it’s “vital” to have somebody in the wings, regardless of how long Carson Palmer continues to play.
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Cardinals Work Out Prescott, To Meet With Campbell
- Dak Prescott will work out for the Broncos and other teams in early April, according to Chase Goodbread of NFL.com. The former Mississippi State standout rushed for more than 800 yards in both his sophomore and junior campaigns. Cowboys quarterbacks coach Wade Wilson and Cardinals QBs boss Freddie Kitchens trekked to Starkville, Miss., to work out Prescott this week as well. Following his Broncos workout, Prescott will visit the Bills and Eagles, Goodbread reports.
- Minnesota linebacker De’Vondre Campbell will meet with the Cardinals, Falcons, Chiefs and Vikings soon, Goodbread tweets.
Draft Rumors: Cardinals Work Out DB, LS
- In total, Smith has six workouts and five visits on his docket, Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post writes. In addition to the clubs listed above, Smith has private workouts with the Cardinals, Jets, Panthers, Patriots, and Ravens. On top of that, he has visits lined up with the Raiders, Steelers, Buccaneers, Dolphins, and Vikings. At the combine, Smith turned heads when he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.47 seconds.
- Portland State Long Snapper Kameron Canaday has had private workouts with the Cardinals and Broncos, as Rand Getlin of NFL.com tweets.
Lyle Sendlein Likely To Retire
While nothing is official is yet, Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians suggested today that center Lyle Sendlein will likely retire this offseason, per Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com (via Twitter). “As far as I know,” Arians said. “I don’t think he’s announced it yet.”
Sendlein, who turned 32 last Wednesday, has been the Cardinals’ starting center for most of the last decade, appearing in 136 regular season games (124 starts) for the team since 2007. The Texas alum ranked 27th out of 39 qualified centers in 2015, according to Pro Football Focus, which graded him as a slightly better run blocker than pass blocker.
If Sendlein does decide to continue his career, it seems likely to happen in Arizona. Last year, the team was prepared to move on without him, but didn’t like its options at center in training camp, and ultimately re-signed the veteran in August.
This time around, center is one of the few spots on the Cardinals’ offensive line that doesn’t already have a clear-cut starter lined up. Whoever ends up landing the job will have good company on either side of him, with Mike Iupati and Evan Mathis penciled in as the club’s starting guards.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Arians Discusses Chandler Jones Trade
Speaking today to reporters, including Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald, Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians admitted he was “shocked” to learn that Chandler Jones was available, revealing that the Patriots instigated the trade discussions that led to a deal earlier this month. While Chandler has just one year left on his contract, Arians is confident he’ll remain in Arizona for a while: “When he hits free agency, we’ll have the dollars to make sure he stays.”
Arians "Shocked" At CJ2K, Gresham Re-Signing On Below-Market Deals
- Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians said he was “shocked” that both Chris Johnson and Jermaine Gresham accepted less money to re-sign in Arizona, adding that there was no special sales pitch for either player (Twitter links via Peter Schrager of FOX Sports).
Noah Spence To Visit Cardinals
- Eastern Kentucky pass rusher Noah Spence has visits lined up with the Jets, Colts, Packers, Bucs, Ravens, Jaguars, Cardinals, and Saints, according to Matt Miller of Bleacher Report (on Twitter). Spence, a former star at Ohio State, was dismissed from the Buckeyes after two positive tests for ecstasy. In 2015, Spence shined for the Colonels, but he’ll now have to answer questions about his history. Still, he is extremely talented and teams are not shying away from him.
Cardinals Haven't Reached Out To Karlos Dansby
- Following his release last week, veteran linebacker Karlos Dansby suggested that he wouldn’t mind heading to Arizona, Cincinnati, or Green Bay. However, Mike Jurecki of Fox Sports 910 in Arizona (Twitter link) hears that the Cardinals haven’t reached out to Dansby. The division-rival Seahawks have shown some interest though.