NFL record predictions for the 2018 regular season
By Ian Cummings
Arizona Cardinals
The Arizona Cardinals managed to luck into the most pro-ready quarterback in the 2018 NFL Draft, trading up to the No. 11 pick to grab UCLA signal caller Josh Rosen.
Rosen will be a competent successor for Carson Palmer. And Steve Wilks will certainly be a good coach, in time. His resume with the Panthers speaks for itself. But 2018 will be an adjusting year.
The Cardinals still lack depth in too many key areas, especially on the offensive line. The average age of the Cardinals’ offensive line is approximately 29 years old, and of that bunch, only D.J. Humphries and Justin Pugh have enough left in the tank to be considered reliable options. The Cardinals have David Johnson, one of the best offensive skill players in the league, to help compensate for these shortcomings, but he can only do so much. An offensive line can make or break an offense, and for the Cardinals, with two injury prone quarterbacks, their front five does not bode well for them.
The Cardinals fare a little bit better in the trenches on the defensive side of the ball. Corey Peters, Olsen Pierre, and Rodney Gunter aren’t household names, but they’re under-appreciated in the sense that they get the job done, and they form a fairly serviceable rotation. Unfortunately, the rest of the defense leaves much to be desired. Chandler Jones and Patrick Peterson are top players at their respective positions, but they don’t have a lot of help. If Markus Golden, who logged 12.5 sacks in 2016, can get back to full speed after an ACL tear, that changes things. But Josh Bynes, Deone Buccanon, and Haason Reddick all have room to improve, and the switch to Wilks’ 4-3 scheme might not be seamless.
The Cardinals’ secondary is especially short-staffed after losing Tyrann Mathieu over a contract dispute. As mentioned earlier, Patrick Peterson is a top-shelf cornerback, but even after trading for Jamar Taylor, the Cardinals are extremely thin there. Buddy Baker should only get better in his second year with the team, but two players do not make a unit. The Cardinals’ defensive roster has some glaring holes which Steve Wilks might not be able to scheme around. In a division filled with dynamic offensive playmakers, it’s hard to imagine the Cardinals making a case for the playoffs. They may start out strong, due to the shock of a new coach and a new quarterback. But this roster isn’t yet built to last sixteen games.