Arizona Cardinals

Off-season? The NFL has no stinking off-season, so we'll explore some news and notes for the next 20 inches or so: Whoever said a person should never revel in the misery of another never played in the NFL, or the NFC West. Outside the Bay Area, there were no tears this week when news broke that 49ers receiver Michael Crabtree suffered a torn Achilles' tendon in voluntary practice.

May 10, 2013; Tempe, AZ, USA; Arizona Cardinals cornerback Tyrann Mathieu (32) signals during a drill during rookie minicamp at the Cardinals Training Facility. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports In the NFL draft, the Arizona Cardinals wanted playmakers. By drafting Tyrann Mathieu, they got one. Now, Mathieu is officially a member of the Cardinals. According to NFL.com, Mathieu signed a four-year deal worth a bit more than $3 million with a $265,000 signing bonus. Mathieu missed his senior season at LSU, but, as our staff writer Ryan Sakamoto stated, he always has a knack for the football and is very similar to St. Louis Rams’ cornerback Janoris Jenkings. This doesn’t appear to be a lot for the NFL, as a lot of rookies are signing bigger deals. However, this shows that Mathieu is willing to play for the Cardinals and that he isn’t going to hold out because of the money. Mathieu is on the right track, and it’s reasonable to expect him to outplay his contract and earn a bigger one if he can stay away from drugs and stay out of trouble. For the Cardinals, this is great news. Mathieu has the potential to be great, and if he is moved to cornerback, he and Patrick Peterson could make life miserable for opposing quarterbacks.

The Cardinals announced Thursday they have signed third-round draft pick Tyrann Mathieu, a safety from LSU, to a four-year contract. Mathieu was the 69th overall pick in the NFL draft. Contract terms were not disclosed by the Cardinals.

Former Texas teammates working together as Cardinals linebackers

With the news that Arizona Cardinals rookie Tyrann Mathieu signed his four-year rookie contract, the immediate question is how much guaranteed money he gets, based on his history of of off the field problems, which include multiple failed drug tests. However, based on reports tweeted by both Ian Rapoport and Albert Breer, Mathieu will get the full amount of guaranteed money slated to a player drafted where he was, and the team gets a layer of protection. Rapoport was the first to tweet that Mathieu would get the full amount of guaranteed money that woudl go to someone drafted in the third round, but that much of it will come in yearly roster bonuses instead of all of it coming as an up front signing bonus. Albert Breer then added more details. Instead of getting the full $662,500 he would be slotted to get up front to sign, he instead gets $265,000 as his signing bonuses, and then the remaining $397,500 as roster bonuses as installments of $132,500 at the start of years 2, 3 and 4 of the deal. In total, his contract is reportedly worth $3.052 million over the four years. Last year's 69th pick (Bills WR T.J. Graham) signed a deal with $2.9 million over four seasons. It sounds like both parties came to the table willing to work with one another. Mathieu gets a good chunk of money up front and the team is protected if he goes back to having problems he had while in college. Keep up with Cardinals news and opinions when you are not on the site. Follow Revenge of the Birds on Twitter at @revengeofbirds and "like" us on Facebook. You can follow me individually at @senorjessroot.

He is the sixth of the nine Cardinals draft picks to sign their contracts Despite the possible threat of a contract squabble over guaranteed money, Tyrann Mathieu has his first NFL contract. The Arizona Cardinals announced on Thursday that they came to terms with the third rounder out of Louisiana State on a four year contract. Mathieu was the team's third round selection, the 69th selection overall, in April's NFL Draft. When contract terms come out, it will be interesting to see how much of that money is guaranteed and how it is structured, considering the off the field concerns that come with Mathieu, who was kicked off the LSU squad after issues with drugs. In two seasons at LSU, Mathieu (5-9, 186) had eight fumble recoveries (two returned for touchdowns), 11 forced fumbles, four interceptions, 133 tackles, 16 tackles for loss, 16 passes defensed, and six sacks while also returning 27 punts for 421 yards (15.6 yard avg.) and two touchdowns. His 11 forced fumbles established a school career-record and tied the SEC's all-time mark. As a sophomore in 2011, Mathieu was a Heisman Trophy finalist, recipient of the Bednarik Award as the nation's top defensive player and unanimous first-team All-America selected after starting all 13 games and collecting 76 tackles, 1.5 sacks, two interceptions, 7.5 tackles for loss and three quarterback pressures. He also ranked sixth in the nation with six forced fumbles and third in the country with five fumble recoveries that season. Of the nine draft picks the Cardinals had, six of them are now under contract. All that remain unsigned are first round pick Jonathan Cooper and fourth round picks Alex Okafor and Earl Watford. Keep up with Cardinals news and opinions when you are not on the site. Follow Revenge of the Birds on Twitter at @revengeofbirds and "like" us on Facebook. You can follow me individually at @senorjessroot.

Despite the possible threat of a contract squabble over guaranteed money, Tyrann Mathieu has his first NFL contract. The Arizona Cardinals announced on Thursday that they came to terms with the third rounder out of Louisiana State on a four year contract. Mathieu was the team's third round selection, the 69th selection overall, in April's NFL Draft. When contract terms come out, it will be interesting to see how much of that money is guaranteed and how it is structured, considering the off the field concerns that come with Mathieu, who was kicked off the LSU squad after issues with drugs. In two seasons at LSU, Mathieu (5-9, 186) had eight fumble recoveries (two returned for touchdowns), 11 forced fumbles, four interceptions, 133 tackles, 16 tackles for loss, 16 passes defensed, and six sacks while also returning 27 punts for 421 yards (15.6 yard avg.) and two touchdowns. His 11 forced fumbles established a school career-record and tied the SEC's all-time mark. As a sophomore in 2011, Mathieu was a Heisman Trophy finalist, recipient of the Bednarik Award as the nation's top defensive player and unanimous first-team All-America selected after starting all 13 games and collecting 76 tackles, 1.5 sacks, two interceptions, 7.5 tackles for loss and three quarterback pressures. He also ranked sixth in the nation with six forced fumbles and third in the country with five fumble recoveries that season. Of the nine draft picks the Cardinals had, six of them are now under contract. All that remain unsigned are first round pick Jonathan Cooper and fourth round picks Alex Okafor and Earl Watford. Keep up with Cardinals news and opinions when you are not on the site. Follow Revenge of the Birds on Twitter at @revengeofbirds and "like" us on Facebook. You can follow me individually at @senorjessroot.

Third-round pick gets four-year deal; Only three draft picks remained unsigned

The road to winning the NFC West hypothetically got a little bit easier with the news that San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Michael Crabtree is possibly lost for the entire 2013 season with a torn Achilles. Crabtree, who caught 85 passes in 2012 for over 1100 yards and nine touchdowns, was a thorn in the Cardinals' side. Against Arizona in two contests, he hauled in 13 passes for 244 yards and four touchdowns. It was the one matchup that seemed to give Patrick Peterson fits. Without Crabtree, who was Colin Kaepernick's favorites target, they are left with Anquan Boldin and some unproven or inconsistent players in their receiving corp. Obviously, someone will have to step up. On paper, it does not look good, although according to some, not all hope is lost. The injury, though, got me thinking about the Cardinals. When Arizona Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians was hired, he thought highly of the receivers already on the team. "It's the best situation at receiver that I have ever walked into," Arians said in March. "It's not the position I've been worrying about." You definitely can see why when you have a Larry Fitzgerald, Andre Roberts and Michael Floyd. However, as noted recently, there is not much in the way of proven talent after those three, despite there being 13 receivers on the roster. Yes, the Cardinals have three very talented receivers that will play a ton. But what would happen if one of them got hurt, especially Larry Fitzgerald? Outside of the top three, there is a total of 11 NFL snaps among the remaining 10 guys, all belonging to LaRon Byrd. Now, I don't think there will be much playing time on offense for any receiver beyond Roberts. Arians loves to use two tight end sets and in the case of a four wide set, Rob Housler would probably be the fourth receiver as he was a season ago. Now, the situation might be so dire. If Fitz got hurt, Floyd looks capable of being that number one guy. Roberts can play the number two, as he has done it reasonably well. Rookie Ryan Swope could be plugged in as a slot receiver and, as many readers would probably agree with, play well. Should the Cardinals look outside the roster for help if there were to lose one of their top guys? There isn't much out there. There is Brandon Lloyd and Randy Moss, but not much else in the way of solid contributors. The same could be said about the 49ers. They have Anquan Boldin, A.J. Jenkins, Mario Manningham and Kyle Williams (both of whom are coming off of 2012 injuries). They also have Ricardo Lockette, who some believe could have a big impact. Getting back to the Cardinals, if Fitz got hurt, it looks like the team could weather that, but it would mean the Floyd would have to take over and be the the of receiver many believe he can be. The 49ers have lost a huge piece to their offense, but they potentially can weather it. Do you think the Cardinals could do the same? Keep up with Cardinals news and opinions when you are not on the site. Follow Revenge of the Birds on Twitter at @revengeofbirds and "like" us on Facebook. You can follow me individually at @senorjessroot.

Dec 2, 2012; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; Arizona Cardinals outside linebacker Sam Acho (94) and inside linebacker Daryl Washington (58) celebrate. I am going to jump right into this one. Daryl Washington is going to be suspended four games for the use of PED’s. The Cardinals are hoping the punishment, is not too drastic because Daryl Washington is a key cog in a stingy defense.  On that note, the presence of Karlos Dansby should be welcomed by the team. He was very productive in Miami and Arizona and a well loved linebacker for the Cardinals faithful. Let us take a look at not only Dansby but a couple of guys brought in to bolster the Cardinals middle linebacker core. Karlos Dansby is a no-brainer for the Arizona Cardinals at one of the inside linebacker spots.  He had 101 solo tackles to go along with 33 assisted tackles for the Miami Dolphins last year.  The stat that jumped out the most, though, was the nine passes Dansby defensed this previous season.  There are defensive backs who do not break up that many passes in a season.  What that should be telling Todd Bowels, is Dansby has great awareness and although he is 31, he still has the ability work in open space.  At about 6’4 250 pounds he also has the size to withstand the pounding that takes place in the box when the run game is headed his way.  He is a true proffessional and great for any locker room.  Dansby is a hard worker and understands the game, in zone and man coverage Dansby excels and does more than hold up his own. Jasper Brinkley was a pick up in free agency for the Cardinals and it was not a bad one.  Last year Brinkley totaled a career-high 872 snaps according to Pro Football Focus.  Not bad for a guy who missed the entire 2011 season with a serious hip injury.  Last year for the Minnesota Vikings. Brinkley tallied 63 tackles with 36 assists. The only downside is Brinkley does not fare well in pass coverage.  He is slow to react to pass plays and lets his man get behind him too often.  With Todd Bowles indicating that a multiple front may be used, and the Cardinals having the personnel to do it, perhaps Brinkley’s weakness can be masked a little bit through scheme. With this being a league in which teams are throwing the ball almost 70 percent of the time it will be very important for Brinkley to shore up his coverage skills while not losing any of the run-stopping ability he has. Rookie Kevin Minter, the Cardinals’ second-round selection in this years draft, is an interesting prospect.  Without a doubt he was LSU’s best linebacker this year and in known as a run defense machine.  While watching film I noticed he has a knack for really playing downhill and can get into the backfield with relative ease when defending the run. In an interview with Arizona Sports 620′s Doug & Wolf Les Miles stated  ”It’ll be real difficult for the ball to be run between the tackles, Kevin Minter just knows where to be”.  Miles went on to say “I think he’ll be an every-down player, he’s a guy who will make a lot of big-time tackles.” The knock on him, just like Brinkley, was weather or not he could succeed in pass coverage. Although he had 6 passes defensed in college does not necessarily mean it will equate to success in the National Football League. He will need to work hard in man and zone coverage if he is to be what Miles is predicting, an every down backer. With Washington being out it is looking like Dansby and Minter will be manning the inside linebacker positions.  But Jasper Brinkley certainly could be in the mix for a starting roll. How he adapts to a 3-4 base defense (played 4-3 in Minnesota) could have an adverse affect on his positioning on the depth chart.  If and when Daryl Washington returns the Cardinals would be hard pressed not to have him and Dansby on the field together. Time will tell, and for the time being, the Arizona Cardinals have a good amount of talent to evaluate at the