The Arizona Cardinals have made key defensive additions with the selections of Walter Nolen and Will Johnson in the first two rounds of the NFL Draft.
On the offensive side, Marvin Harrison Jr. has been putting in serious work this offseason as he looks to break out after an average rookie year. He and James Conner are projected to have a big season.
“Opening the season with an incredibly fortuitous slate against New Orleans and Carolina, the Cardinals will pick apart the lesser defenses on their schedule but struggle overall. Harrison will amass 11 touchdowns while Conner, in his age-30 season, will log 12, including three in a Week 5 game against the Titans that will be remembered by almost no human,” Conor Orr wrote.
However, the future of quarterback Kyler Murray remains uncertain, as he is widely projected to be traded.
“Murray’s dead cap number almost halves after this season,” Orr wrote. “The former No. 1 pick is not a bad quarterback, but the Cardinals will likely conclude that the club has maximized Murray in Arizona and that it’s best to recoup some kind of draft asset before pivoting. Murray had a six-game stretch at the tail end of last season in which he failed to top 100 in quarterback rating, and he has played just one fully healthy season since 2020. While a lot of this is not Murray’s fault and is often the reality of playing for a team bad enough to qualify for the No. 1 pick, Arizona will prepare for larger-scale changes after finishing in the NFC West basement.”
If the Cardinals do move on from Murray, they’ve been linked to a young star quarterback—Jayden Daniels. Adding Daniels could dramatically reshape Arizona’s future.
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“Daniels would be set up for much success in the desert. He’s the kind of quarterback that alters your franchise forever, and the Cardinals would be perennial contenders with him under center,” Richie Bradshaw wrote.
While it’s unlikely the Commanders would trade Daniels, especially after a strong rookie season, nothing is impossible in the NFL. If the Cardinals can make it happen, the future of their offense could be exceptionally bright.
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