There is a lot new for Arizona Cardinals wide receiver/return specialist Greg Dortch as the 2024 season approaches.
There is a new uniform number, a potentially expanded consistent role in the offense and a feeling of belonging since entering the NFL as an undrafted free agent with the Jets in 2019.
With Rondale Moore traded to the Falcons in the offseason, Dortch was eager to take the No. 4 jersey Moore wore after being a second-round pick in 2021, the year Dortch signed with the Cardinals on Aug. 3 coincidentally after being waived by the Falcons on June 17.
“Man, I’m not going to lie. I’m really excited about that number,” Dortch said this week. “I really love it. It looks good on me. I wore it in high school, so it kinda means a little bit something to me; just my journey leading up to the NFL.
“When I first got here, I was given No. 38. I wore 38 in the preseason and then I moved to 83 and I wore that for three years and now I finally get a number that I can wear that I really wanted to wear so I think it adds just confidence, more confidence to what I already had.”
In two games with the Panthers in 2021, Dortch had no offensive snaps and 34 in five games with the Cardinals in 2021. His role started to grow in 2022, but was largely dependent on Moore’s availability. He played all 16 games and had 513 offensive snaps, but then came the coaching change after the 2023 season.
Asked about this offseason and being in the same system with the same coaches, Dortch said, “I would say that it’s changed a lot. Going from Year 1 when you have new coaches and you have to reprove yourself all over again and then stepping into Year 2 and the coaches kinda know what you bring to the table, and this is for everybody not just me, you just feel more comfortable because you know that they’ve seen you before and you know that they know what you have in the tank. So stepping into Year 2 it just allows you to be more comfortable, play faster and just be yourself.”
Still, it took awhile last season to get opportunities beyond returning kicks. In the first three games, he had no offensive snaps, followed by one each in the next two games, then 16, four, 22 and one in quarterback Kyler Murray’s return to the field. In two of those games, he had one target in each with one reception for two yards.
Everything changed the next week with 46 snaps against the Texans, while catching 6-of-8 targets for 76 yards.
Asked if ever wondered if his opportunity would come, Dortch said, “I had already been through that before with the last coaching staff and me personally, I don’t worry about, ‘Oh, when am I gonna play or why aren’t they playing me?’ I don’t worry about all those things. Those are things that I can’t control. The only thing that I can control, is when they do say, ‘OK, Dortch, go in.’ That’s what I can control.
“My effort, how hard I run to the ball. If I make the play, when I make the play; that’s what I can control. So all the other stuff, the outside noise all the things that I can’t control, I don’t really worry about that.”
He played 352 offensive snaps in the final seven games and was targeted 39 times, catching 24 for 280 yards and two touchdowns. It has him enthused to have a role going forward as more than a kick returner.
“Yeah, I’m more than just a returner, for sure,” he said. “I feel like I showed that. I’m gonna continue to show that. But I’m just excited to step into this new role and I’m definitely looking forward to it. I’m always comfortable but I think me being comfortable comes from the work that I’ve put in.
“Not while everybody’s watching, but the work that I put in when nobody’s watching. I think that work allows me to be confident and it allows me to perform to my best ability. When my number gets called and I have an opportunity to make a play, I’m going to make the play.”
As for his mentality possibly changing from fighting for a roster spot to pushing for more opportunity in the offense, he insisted, “The mentality stays the same. Undrafted, Year 6, same mentality. If not, I’m a little bit more hungry than I was from the jump. This is a big year for me. And I just plan on going out there and having fun.
“I feel like everything will take care of itself as long as I go out there and I just be myself and have fun. I’ll have no worries.”
He described his role as “just being used a little more on the offensive side of the ball. I know I’ve built the trust of the coaches but once again, their job is to coach, my job is to play, so once they call my number whenever that time is, I’ll make sure to be ready.”
Finally, with his new number and role, a reporter wondered if the stars seemed to be aligning for a special year.
“I think so,” Dortch said. “I think I’ve worked my ass off to earn all of this that I’m getting. But this is where the real work starts. All the things that I’ve done leading up to this point has just prepared me for this moment and I think that this is just the beginning. You guys really haven’t even seen anything yet.”
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