With one of the highest paid quarterbacks in the league who has talent but has built a consistent skillset, the Cardinals are ready to take the next step offensively after taking one of the best wide receiver prospects we’ve seen in a long time. Welcome back to another edition of ‘The Super Bowl Race In The Perspective of Chase’, and today we will preview the Arizona Cardinals 2024 season!
2023 Season
Not much was expected from Arizona in 2023. They were going to be without Kyler Murray for a good portion of the season due to an injury he suffered in 2022. So the Cardinals went to Joshua Dobbs, who had a surprising hot start to the season. However, once he came back down to earth, he was traded and Kyler Murray started the final eight of games of the season. He was about average, showing some flashes but was not anywhere as consistent as his Pro Bowl 2021 & 2022 campaigns. James Conner ran better than most give him credit for, but the Cardinals offense could get much together and ranked just 24th in scoring. And defensively, it’s no longer the dominant one that starred Chandler Jones and JJ Watt. And their pass rush ranked just 30th in sacks. Overall, nothing went too well as they finished with their second consecutive four win season.
Offseason Additions and Losses
The Cardinals, a team that doesn’t appear to want to contend, clearly got better in the offseason. And that started with the offensive line, signing offensive tackle Jonah Williams to a two year deal. Williams was one Cincinnati’s most consistent lineman in 2023, and now he’ll be a key part of the O-Line in Arizona, who desperately needed offensive line help. They also made smaller moves, signing DeeJay Dallas to back up Conner and Justin Jones to improve the interior of the defensive line. But the main decision for Arizona was to let go of Marquise Brown who went to Kansas City, while they took rookie wide receiver from Ohio State Marvin Harrison Jr. at No. 4 overall in the draft. Brown is a little quicker and is a proven 1,000 yard receiver, but Harrison is cheaper, fits their timeline and has much a higher ceiling. He will even make just as much of an impact as Brown would’ve made. So the Cardinals cleaned up this offseason.
X-Factor: Trey McBride
I think Trey McBride has become enough of a big name to be considered ‘under-the-radar’, but has abilities are up there with some of the games best tight ends. And he just isn’t recognized in that way. In his second season in the league, McBride totaled over 800 yards on 81 receptions, ranking him 7th and fifth in those respective categories. Outside of George Kittle, Travis Kelce and Sam LaPorta, McBride was just as productive as any other tight end last year. And he did it in a shaky quarterback room. Now, Murray is another year healthy and another year where he could go back to his old form, and Harrison will take up so much attention as a WR1. This will allow McBride to get more wide-open opportunities. I feel McBride is one of the NFL’s most underrated pass catchers, and he build upon his 2023 success this coming year.
Reason for Concern: Depth
The Cardinals have a ton of talented players on this team. The raw talent is there for Kyler Murray. Executing on that talent is still a work-in-progress. Harrison is great. Conner is one of the league’s most underrated backs. His ability to stay consistent, add value in the pass game and use his strength to create red zone opportunities makes him a dangerous runner. We mentioned McBride. And defensively, Budda Baker has been one of the best players in football for a while, and Zaven Collins has been a decent linebacker. They just don’t have anyone next to or behind these players. Take wide receiver, where Harrison great, but the rest of the room consists of Michael Wilson and Greg Dortch. Not exactly ideal. The secondary; no depth. Not at all. That’s the case for honestly the entire defense. They have talented guys, but no else behind them.
Reason for Promise: Murray’s Got the Talent
Kyler Murray does have some weapons to work with this year. Harrison may win OROY, and McBride looks to make the next stride in his game. And that may be able to happen…if Kyler can turn back into Kyler. It is hard to image he’ll turn into the potential star he was being drafted at No. 1. And in the two seasons before he suffered an injury, he made the Pro Bowl, went 17-13 as a starter and completed 68% of his passes. In fact, Murray is a pretty accurate thrower, and limits turnovers. He also has incredible rushing and scrambling ability, allowing him to extend plays. He just doesn’t have great decision making, isn’t efficient with his passes and struggles to find ways to win on his own. But being an accurate passer who can run and limit turnovers is huge. While he is signed, I think this season is Kyler’s final chance to prove he can be a star in this league, and he has the talent and potential to do so.
Prediction
The Cardinals won’t do much in 2024. And they’re not supposed to. They’re making moves to move the team in the right direction, but they’re far from a contender for even a postseason spot. I feel they have the talent to make some cool plays and pull of some upsets this season, but I wouldn’t expect a winning record or anywhere near it this coming year.
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