Arizona Cardinals

When the Cardinals' veteran defensive backs met for the first time last month, all that was missing were the new backpacks, cool lunch boxes and sharpened No. 2 pencils. Otherwise, it felt like the first day of school, because seven of the 11 were new to the team.

Apr. 2, 2013; Tempe, AZ, USA; Arizona Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians (left) with quarterback quarterback Carson Palmer during a press conference to announce his signing with the team at the Cardinals practice facility. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports The Arizona Cardinals haven’t been progressing as well as coach Bruce Arians had hoped, but Carson Palmer has no problem with Arians expressing his feelings about some of the offensive struggles. According to NFL.com, Palmer said that ‘he loves’ Arians. Palmer talked about how respected Arians is, and he also mentioned the remarkable success Arians has experienced during his time with the Indianapolis Colts and Pittsburgh Steelers. The article talks about how Arians has been described as a stickler, but Palmer seems fine with Arians. We can’t be sure that Palmer and Arians are completely getting along, but this is still a good sign for Cardinals fans. Expect Palmer to thrive in Arians’ system, which involves spreading the field and throwing the deep ball. With guys like Larry Fitzgerald, Ryan Swope, Andre Roberts and Michael Floyd, it would be hard for Palmer to fail. With he and Arians getting along, it will be even harder. Expect there to be bumps in the relationship between these two, but expect Palmer to benefit from Arians long-term. Chemistry is key for all sports, and good chemistry is being shown here with Palmer and Arians.

May 14, 2013; Tempe, AZ, USA; Arizona Cardinals tight end Korey Jones (47), defensive tackle Dan Williams (92), linebacker Reggie Walker (56) and defensive end Everrette Thompson (72) look on during organized team activities at the Cardinals Training Facility. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports What is the Cardinals’ biggest concern? A few months ago, the answer to this question was obviously everything on the offensive side of the football. The Cardinals had no legitimate starting quarterback, an unsuccessful running game, a failing offensive line, and no money to fix those things due to a few burdensome contracts. However, a new front office and staff headed by new GM Steve Keim made decisions that fostered optimism, at least for the long-term outlook. They brought in a new head coach, acquired veterans whose careers were in need of a revival, drafted a very promising offensive guard among other good picks, and dumped several problematic contracts. The team also addressed a need for depth at key defensive positions, and did it all without drastically overpaying any of the new additions. There’s no doubt that the Cardinals have made several smart decisions this offseason. So now, let’s revisit the question: What is the Cardinals biggest concern? There are several ways this question could be answered. While the team should certainly be better than it was last year, they are by no means perfect. The Cardinals split up with the safety tandem of Kerry Rhodes and Adrian Wilson, leaving a glaring need at those spots. Yeremiah Bell and Rashad Johnson are both capable replacements, but Rhodes and Wilson were important parts in the Cardinals defense. The offensive line should be at least functional now, with the return if Levi Brown and the addition of Jonathan Cooper, but it can be argued that the Cardinals did not overhaul the line enough. Finally, there’s the uncertainty surrounding Daryl Washington, who is one of the Cardinals best players. He is already going to have to serve a four-game suspension, and he is also being charged with aggravated assault. He could be unavailable for some time, and the loss of a player if his caliber could be an issue. These are all troubles that may hold the team back, but the biggest thing that will hurt the Cardinals success can be summed up in one word: circumstances. There are two parts to this. First is the schedule. The Cardinals play in arguably the toughest division in the NFL. They have to play against the Seahawks, Rams, and 49ers a total of six times, and every time they will need to play their best to win.  The Cardinals will also have to face the AFC South, meaning they will have to play playoff teams like the Colts and Texans. The Falcons are also in the schedule. While no game in the NFL is a sure thing, the Cardinals will be facing many elite or improving teams in the upcoming season, which will make winning more difficult. Added to that is the unfamiliarity. The Cardinals have a new head coach,  a new defensive coordinator, an almost entirely new offensive staff, and a new starting quarterback. The absence of leaders like Adrian Wilson or former DC Ray Horton further broke down team chemistry. That can certainly be rebuilt with this new group, but it will take time. The tough schedule coupled with the lack of chemistry is simply the reality of the situation the team is in. This isn’t really a failure of the team, it is just a part of the rebuilding(or retooling as Bruce Arians prefers to call it) process. The Cardinals have had a rough time the past three seasons, and are definitely looking to reach the level of the elite teams in the NFL.  They aren’t there yet, but they have certainly taken smart steps towards that goal. It is hard to imagine them failing to improve their record by at least a couple of wins. That said, the Cardinals will also have a rough moments in 2013 due to the nature of their situation.

Arians makes sure squad prepped for third downs, red zone, two-minute

Too early to think about your fantasy draft? Any fantasy GM who's worth their salt would say otherwise. I'm in two recurring leagues, one of which is a keeper league, and we're getting to the time of the year where the GMs in a 14 team league need to declare their two keepers so that others can bargain and try to trade draft picks for players they're not going to keep, and try to turn the inevitable free agent into draft picks you can use to strengthen your 2013 team. This spurred the idea for me write this article and look around the NFC West at player stocks, who's rising and falling as a result of the draft, free agency, and coaching changes, and who is a value player worth using one of my two franchise tags to keep on my team this year. Today we'll look at the Arizona Cardinals. The Arizona Cardinals are a team of potential, but only one keeper, and that is Larry Fitzgerald. While Fitzgerald is falling in Mathew Berry's 2013 Fantasy Football Player rankings on ESPN, he's fallen from his 2012 average draft position of 14 down to his suggested position of 32, to me Fitzgerald's upside keeps him in keeper gold. His slide in projected draft position is of course due to last season's offensive woes where Larry ranked 40th in his position groups point rankings, averaging only 6.2 points (per game ppg) falling behind WR2 on the depth chart Andre Roberts who averaged 6.3 ppg. But Larry's future looks bright, for the simple comparison to a different WR1 who was used in Arians scheme with a big armed QB. To do that I would like to compare Larry's future numbers with Reggie Wayne of the Indianapolis Colts numbers from 2012 where Wayne was ranked 15th in points in his position and averaged 9.9 points per game. If we keep it simple and split the difference by putting Larry in a new offense that is geared toward his strengths, with a QB who can throw it deep, and someone who can call plays that totally revamped Reggie Wayne's career, I think it's easy for Fitzgerald to average 8.5 points per game, putting him as 18th overall in projected points. This of course would be his floor, I believe 2013 Fitz has a high ceiling, due to his physical gifts and talent he is poised to do much better than Wayne did in 2012. So I say, draft Fitz around the end of the 2nd or early 3rd, if he's available any time after that he's a complete steal. Fitz is a fantasy WR1, chisel it in stone, Fitz is back and he is hungry for the endzone. The Cardinals also have Rob Housler who Berry ranks 129 overall, after he ended the year 38th in points in his position, averaging 3.2 ppg. There are two factors that I think Berry didn't weight into his deciding factors. One, look at Brandon Myers numbers from 2012 averaging 6.1 ppg and ending up as 10th in points from a player who was undrafted in the majority of fantasy leagues last year. The second is Head Coach Bruce Arians who wanted to draft Housler as a wide receiver in Pittsburgh. He already likes to use TEs in mismatches, now he gets to use Housler for those mismatches. Carson Palmer made Myers fantasy relevant because he could catch the ball and he was available for hot routes when everything else crumbled. Housler is poised as my Cardinals break out player in Fantasy, and could very well be the next Dallas Clark in fantasy line ups. For arguments sake, I predict Housler will end up in the top 12 in fantasy scoring TEs this year, and that his use opens up other parts of the passing game. If you're crafty you can snag Housler late, but if you're in a league with GMs who are already aware of the potential that Housler has to break out in 2013 you're going to have to grab him around the 70th pick, once people start looking for value. Don't let him slip by you once the big name TEs are gone. He's worthy of being a TE1 if you miss the big names or at least worthy of a bench slot at TE2 waiting to prove you're a draft genius. Running backs for the Arizona Cardinals are going to be a tough situation. Andre Ellington

Coach Bruce Arians already is drawing favorable reviews from his Arizona Cardinals players, such as Carson Palmer. Although Arians is relatively new to the role, he seems to be a natural.

The Arizona Cardinals are still feeling the ripple effect of plummeting through the final three quarters of the 2012 regular season; at the very least when it comes to the odds Vegas is giving. Despite last year’s 4-0 start the Cards are regularly

"God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." - Reinhold Neibuhr circa 1942 and common Alcoholic Anonymous slogan. Everyone has faced that proverbial fork in the road. Whether it be a personal, business, financial, physical, emotional, mental or whatever roadblock life has thrown in your way - you come to that point where either you cross that bridge and move on - or you stop where you are and sink further into the abyss. Eventually, the person has to be true to his own self. (Which would make a great signature tagline, BTW.) Which leads me to the curious case of Tyrann Mathieu and his new 4-year contract he signed on Thursday with the Arizona Cardinals. His guaranteed money will be spaced out along the longevity of the contract - a practice that the team has used before , according to AzCentral beat reporter Kent Somers, at least two players - RB Chuck Levy and LB Jamir Miller - both guys that had problems with marijuana use - with polar results. Both Levy and Miller were Cardinals second round choices in 2004 under then-coach Buddy Ryan. Both failed at least two drug tests for pot and Miller was suspended for the first four games, while Levy for the entire season. Both were on the precipice of seeing their NFL dream of playing the game they loved vanished in a puff of smoke, literally. Both could have followed down the same path that many young multimillionaire NFL rookies have and as Miller stated: "When you give a 20 year old that much money, things are going to happen. Both players were eventually released. But when the two players stumbled up to that metaphoric crossroad one, Miller, took the supposed high road and Levy, the other path less favored. Miller had four very good seasons with the Cleveland Browns, being named Pro Bowl and All-Pro in 2001 and was the CEO of a Phoenix-based potato chip maker of the brand name of Crave. Levy, meanwhile has had more difficulty overcoming his marijuana addiction. He signed with the San Francisco 49ers and had mediocre numbers before calling it quits two seasons later. He tried his hand at high school football with coaching jobs at Chaparal and Basha before a litany of charges had him arrested. Ryan seemed unsympathetic at the time, saying: "I don't for sorry for Levy at all. I feel sorry for Mr. B. and Chuck's teammates who believed in him." So Mr. Mathieu - which path do you take?

By all accounts, Arizona Cardinals rookie safety Tyrann Mathieu has turned things around in his life. He has been clean for several months and has been integrated into the life and family of Patrick Peterson. Now he is officially a member of the Arizona Cardinals, as he signed a four-year rookie contract on Thursday. The Cardinals got a discount initially on the money they pay Mathieu up front, a way to protect them in case he goes back to bad habits, but Mathieu will get all that money he is entitled to (all $662,500 of guaranteed money) as long as he avoids drug problems, regardless of whether or not he remains on the Cardinals roster. However, the way Mathieu talks, he feels very strongly about not letting people down and intends to not repeat the past. As quoted in a Darren Urban blog post, Mathieu now feels obligated to the Cardinals family. "I knew it was a long shot and it would be a process, but to finally sit down and sign my name on the dotted line means a lot to me," he said about getting the deal done. If there are doubters still about the kid, know that his perspective has changed. "I'm part of a family now, so I'm obligated to the community and the entire Arizona Cardinals organization," Mathieu said. "The Bidwill family, Steve Keim, the coaching staff, I'm obligated to everybody now. It's my responsibility." Something to live for is always the best motivation for changing your life. To view the organization as a family says a lot. It means that there is love and responsibility. There will be support for him and there is internal motivation for him to not let people down. As he has since being drafted, he is at least saying the right things. 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.

Jan 04, 2013; Arlington, TX, USA; Texas A Ryan Swope broke records at Texas A&M with Ryan Tannehill and Johnny Manziel as his quarterbacks. He ran a 4.34 at the combine and was projected to be a 3rd round pick in the draft. After watching some highlight tapes of Swope I was very impressed. Swope all the tools to succeed in the NFL. He has the speed, great route runner, and some very soft hands. The only thing Swope is missing, and it’s not his fault is height. With other short receivers like Wes Welker, Victor Cruz, and Danny Amendola being key contributors to their team its opened the door for players like Swope. In college Swope knew how to separate from defenders in man coverage and how to find the hole in zone defenses. From the highlight tape I saw most of his catches were wide open, but he also made the catches in traffic. In the NFL its much tougher to get separation which shouldn’t give Swope that much of a problem because of his great hands. Also the most impressive thing to me was how fast he moved in and out of cuts his burst is incredible. If you watch their game against the National Champions this past year you can see how he lit up one of the best defenses in the nation. One big concern of Swope is injuries. He suffered three concussions in college, but never missed a game. The reason for his concussions are because of the way he plays. He plays with a fearless attitude always going for that extra yard. He isn’t afraid to put his head down and run you over. Which is the type of player the Arizona Cardinals love and had no problem spending a 6th round pick on him. I believe Swope has the talent to become a elite wide receiver, but it will be very tough for him to do that because you have to be on the field and have the ball thrown to you to become elite. With an already elite wide out on the team in Larry Fitzgerald the ball will be thrown to him quite a bit. Then the number two Michael Floyd who I believe will have a breakout season and step into that elite conversation after this year will get his fair share. Plus Robert Housler and Andre Roberts I just don’t think there will be enough balls to go around for everyone. Swope has a uphill battle to climb, and this situation reminds me of the Diamondbacks with their solid five outfielders not everyone can play. Its comfortable for the Arizona Cardinals to have such quality depth at that position, but its tougher on the players. This receiving corps can be scary, and if Carson Palmer does his part and the line blocks they could be as good as the best receiving corps in the league. They could be similar to the Atlanta Falcons three headed monster much like the Cardinals use to have in Fitzgerald, Boldin, and Breaston. Don’t be surprised if three receivers reach the 1,000 yard mark this year I believe it will happen. While I believe Swope has the tools to be elite it will be tough for him to get a lot of playing time unless injuries occur. I see Swope averaging 45 receptions 5 tds 600 yards throughout his career.Which is a solid player, but not considered elite. Hopefully he proves me wrong and just earns his playing time to become elite.