Category: Arizona Cardinals offseason

DeAndre Hopkins trade one step closer to complete as WR passes physical

All that is left is for David Johnson to pass his for the trade with the Texans to be complete.

The agreed trade the Arizona Cardinals made with the Houston Texans to acquire receiver DeAndre Hopkins is one step closer to being completely official. Both the Cardinals and the Texans have announced the deal but it was pending both Hopkins and running back David Johnson, who was sent to the Texans as part of the deal, pass physical exams.

According to NFL Network’s James Palmer, Hopkins has passed his physical.

Whether Johnson has passed his or not has not yet been announced.

When that happens, the trade will be official and processed in the league office.

Head coach Kliff Kingsbury said in a video press conference said last week he was not concerned and was confident that the deal would be official before the draft next week.

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Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Stitcher Radio.

Ep. 263

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Ep. 262

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Cardinals, NFL to begin virtual offseason program as early as next week

The Cardinals can begin on April 20 or 27 and have a three-week period for Phase 1.

The NFL and NFLPA have agreed to an altered scheduled for teams’ offseason programs. Teams can begin their offseason programs as early as next Monday, April 20, but will be limited to a virtual setting until every team in the NFL can open its team facilities.

The initial report came from NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.

Teams who have a new head coach can begin on the 20th and have a four-week Phase 1 that includes a virtual minicamp. All other teams can begin either the 20th or the 27th but are allowed three weeks in the first phase.

The second phase of offseason work can begin on May 18. At this point, on-field work will be allowed, but only if all 32 teams can open their facilities.

All teams get a three-day voluntary minicamp, but those teams with a new head coach get two. The rules for these virtual minicamps are no more than two hours of virtual classroom work and a limit of two-hour virtual workouts.

On June 26, all offseason workout programs end.

This time frame does not yet include OTAs or mandatory minicamp.

One main thing is the league maintains the desire to have a level playing field and only opening team facilities once all states with teams allow them to be opened.

The Cardinals originally would have begun the first phase of their offseason program on the 20th.

Head coach Kliff Kingsbury already anticipated much of this and spoke about it in a video conference with reporters last week. “We’re going to do the Zoom meetings when we’re allowed to and do every sort of tele-coaching that we can come up with,” he said.

The Cardinals have not announced yet whether they will begin on the 20th or the 27th.

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Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Stitcher Radio.

Ep. 263

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Ep. 262

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Cardinals seek 3rd RB they can use on offense

Kliff Kingsbury feels supremely confident about Kenyan Drake and Chase Edmonds. He is less excited about D.J. Foster in terms of the offense.

The Arizona Cardinals have three running backs on their roster in Kenyan Drake, Chase Edmonds and D.J. Foster, who recently re-signed with the team. They want to have three running backs on the roster for the season, but it sounds like head coach Kliff Kingsbury is looking for more than Foster for the offense.

“We’re really excited about those two guys, Kenyan and Chase,” he told reporters on a video conference call this week. “When Chase had his opportunity, he was phenomenal and we all saw what Kenyan did. (They are) two explosive backs that played at a very high level when they had their opportunity.

“But that third spot, well see.”

Foster did not play a single down on offense in the six games in which he played. It was all on special teams. He made the team because of his play on special teams.

“We think he has a good skill set, but that’s an area we’d like to have three that you feel like we could roll through and not lose much,” said Kingsbury.

Foster isn’t as explosive a runner as either Drake or Edmonds.

The way Kingsbury talks, we should expect the Cardinals to target a running back either on Day 2 or Day 3 of the draft. If not, then an undrafted rookie running back might have a real shot at making the team.

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Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Stitcher Radio.

Ep. 263

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Ep. 262

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Kliff Kingsbury’s downtime has given him more time to study college offenses

He looked at college offenses in extra time instead of pro offenses.

With how the NFL offseason has played out and more or less everyone having more time at home, it has given Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury more time to play with his offense. He has had time to look at other offensive systems.

But it hasn’t been NFL offenses he has studied.

“It’s definitely allowed me to dive into a lot of the college game more,” he told reporters this week on a video conference. “I’ve always tried to study some of those top offensive guys that I had a ton of respect for and liked the way they operated. But it’s really allowed me to watch a lot more of that. There’s a lot of great minds at that level.”

Kingsbury brought what many call a college offense to the pros last year with the Cardinals in his first year as head coach and, after early struggles, has had some success.

Now, why study college offenses instead of other pro schemes?

Partly has to be because he did that during the season.

If he is looking for innovation, the college game is where to go, as that is where there are concepts not yet used in the NFL.

We will see what that translates into once the season begins.

“It’s definitely a deeper dive into offensive football this offseason with all the downtime.”

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Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Stitcher Radio.

Ep. 263

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Ep. 262

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Possible return of C A.Q. Shipley ‘a work in progress’

Kliff Kingsbury only had praise for Shipley but didn’t clearly say he was interested in bringing him back for another year.

The Arizona Cardinals have re-signed or retained 12 of their free agents entering the offseason. However, one notable player has not. That would be center A.Q. Shipley.

The Cardinals re-signed free agent offensive linemen Marcus Gilbert and Max Garcia. Thus far, Shipley remains unsigned.

“A.Q it’s still a work in progress,” head coach Kliff Kingsbury said in a video conference with reporters this week when asked whether they have interest in re-signing him. “He did a phenomenal job last year leadership-wise, to step into a college offense and the way he led that and bought into the tempo and the things we were doing. I couldn’t be more impressed with him.”

Kingsbury didn’t exactly give any real clarity, adding simply, ” We’ll see where that goes.”

It would appear with Mason Cole ready to play regularly, they are ready to move on from Shipley. Kingsbury repeatedly said last season how important Cole was and how he was basically even with Shipley in training camp and the preseason in terms of competing for the starting job.

Now it appears it is Cole’s job to lose. The Cardinals brought back Garcia, who can play center, and retain second-year center Lamont Gaillard.

The most likely scenario for a potential return for Shipley would be like back in 2015 when the Cardinals had moved on from Lyle Sendlein but re-signed in him training camp after they didn’t like what they saw from Ted Larson and others at center.

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Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Stitcher Radio.

Ep. 263

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Ep. 262

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Cardinals have less than $7M in cap space left

The Cardinals don’t have any cap space to make any other moves other than sign their rookies.

It appears that all the Arizona Cardinals’ player contracts have been processed. There are 66 players listed on the team’s roster and Over the Cap has the details for all 66 player contracts.

With all that information, we know one thing — the Cardinals have almost no space left under the salary cap.

According to Over the Cap, Arizona only has $6.92 million left in cap space.

Barring moves to free up cap space, they really have no room to do anything else other than sign their draft picks and rookies.

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Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Stitcher Radio.

Ep. 263

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Ep. 262

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Cardinals unconcerned about unfinalized DeAndre Hopkins trade

“It’s been slower than it would be but I have no doubts it will be done before the draft,” Kliff Kingsbury told reporters.

The Arizona Cardinals made arguably the best move of the offseason thus far when they traded running back David Johnson, a second-round pick and a 2021 fourth-round pick for receiver DeAndre Hopkins and a fourth-round pick in this year’s draft. Both the Cardinals and the Houston Texans announced the deal.

However, it has not been processed at the NFL offices because both must pass physical exams and, thus far, that has not occurred.

The question has been raised whether the deal could fall through. That would make things tricky, as the NFL draft is in a couple of weeks and picks are involved.

The Cardinals are not worried.

“There’s not a concern,” head coach Kliff Kingsbury told reporters on a video conference this week. “Those aren’t official as far as I know at this point, but we’ll get it done.”

He understands that doctors have other priorities than a physical exam for a healthy NFL player.

Fans should not be worried. The deal will go through. The Cardinals don’t foresee any snafus.

“It’s been slower than it would be but I have no doubts it will be done before the draft.”

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Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Stitcher Radio.

Ep. 263

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Ep. 262

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Cardinals believe continuity in players, staff will be a help in uncertain offseason

They have their same coaching staff, the same schemes and a ton of returning players.

The NFL offseason has been an odd one so far because of the uncertainty during the coronavirus pandemic. Team facilities are closed down. Free agency happened and so will the draft but almost all virtually.

As a result of everything, the start of offseason programs will not be able to begin on time.

The Arizona Cardinals would not have begun phase one of their offseason program until later this month, but it appears their will be a truncated offseason before the start of the season, assuming the season will be able to begin on time.

However, the Cardinals enter the second year with a coaching staff that had few changes. They re-signed 12 of their own players.

“For us, being in Year 2 I think goes a long way,” said head coach Kliff Kingsbury in a video call with reporters on Tuesday. “We had a lot of continuity with the staff, with the players coming back, keeping our schemes in place.”

He does have a plan in place when they can begin to meet with players. It just might be virtually.

“We’re going to do the Zoom meetings when we’re allowed to and do every sort of tele-coaching that we can come up with,” he said.

They have almost all the same starters on offense again as well as on defense. Their specialists are the same. They will run the same offense and defense.

The offseason has been as far from ideal as it could, but considering where the Cardinals are as a team, they have as ideal a situation as one could hope to have right now.

“That continuity I think will serve us well.”

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Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Stitcher Radio.

Ep. 263

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Ep. 262

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Cardinals CB Robert Alford completely healthy, waiting for offseason program

“Right now I’m ready to rock. I’m just ready for them to set the date we can come back for the offseason and start things rolling.”

The Arizona Cardinals have not signed any cornerbacks to the roster this offseason in free agency but do essentially get a new player. Robert Alford, signed last season after being released by the Atlanta Falcons, is back and ready after missing all last season with a broken leg.

He can’t wait for things to start up this offseason after restrictions are lifted related to the coronavirus pandemic.

“I’m feeling good. I’m 100 percent,” he told Lisa Matthews in an interview on On the Fly. “Right now I’m ready to rock. I’m just ready for them to set the date we can come back for the offseason and start things rolling.”

Alford broke his leg in an outside practice in training camp so he hasn’t done any football activities since last August.

It won’t be like he is a newcomer, though. He is familiar with the Cardinals’ defense.

“Pretty much I was able to grasp the playbook with me being out,” he said.

If things go as expected, Alford will join Patrick Peterson as the two starting border cornerbacks and 2019 second-round pick Byron Murphy will be the team’s slot cornerback.

It was the secondary the team envisioned after last year’s draft, but with Alford’s injury and Peterson’s six-game suspension, the Cardinals were without their two top corners for nearly half the season.

Alford promises some fun with Peterson.

“We’re going to give them something to cheer,” said.

He is like the rest of us when it comes to football.

“I’m just ready to go.”

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Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Stitcher Radio.

Ep. 263

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Ep. 262

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Cardinals make another big charitable contribution to local food banks

They team up with State Farm to provide more than one million meals to local non-profit organizations.

The Arizona Cardinals continue to do important charitable work as the coronavirus pandemic impacts the lives of the people around Arizona. After committing $1 million to the Arizona Coronavirus Relief Fund, they are teaming up with State Farm, whose name is on the team’s stadium, to provide more than one million meals to be distributed to five non-profit organizations throughout the Phoenix area.

They call it the “Million Meal” campaign and the beneficiaries will be:

  • St. Mary’s Food Bank
  • St. Vincent DePaul
  • United Food Bank
  • Phoenix Rescue Mission
  • Midwest Food Bank

“We’re incredibly grateful to State Farm for the opportunity to work with them on this critically important initiative,” said Cardinals owner Michael Bidwill in the team’s press release. “Both of our organizations place community involvement among our highest priorities and recognize the impact that we can make, particularly in extraordinary times like now. The non-profit groups receiving these meals do tremendous work and we are honored to assist them in this way.”

Cardinals players Chandler Jones and DeAndre Hopkins are doing their part, too. Hopkins is donating $150,000 to the Arizona Coronavirus Relief Fund, while Jones is providing 150,000 meals to food banks in Arizona and upstate New York, where he is from.

Anyone interested in supporting this cause can do so through the Full Cart virtual food pantry program. Run by “Feeding Children Everywhere,” an organization dedicated to serving families affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, Full Cart is the safest and quickest way to help those in need during these uncertain times by arranging for a package of groceries to be shipped directly to the front door of families.  To get involved, please visit fullcart.org/good-deeds-donate/.

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Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Stitcher Radio.

Ep. 263

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Ep. 262

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