Josh Dobbs lands with 49ers

Dobbs joins an NFC West rival to back up QB Brock Purdy after starting eight games for the Cardinal in 2023.

Quarterback Josh Dobbs is not one of the Arizona Cardinals’ free agents. They traded him to the Minnesota Vikings before the trade deadline.

He has a new team in 2024.

According to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo, Dobbs is signing with the San Francisco 49ers, getting a fully guaranteed one-year, $2.25 million contract with up to $750,000 in incentives.

He is lined up to be Brock Purdy’s backup for the 49ers.

Dobbs started the first eight games of the season for the Cardinals last season after they acquired him from the Cleveland Browns before the season. He went 1-7, completing 62.8% of his passes for 1,569 yards, eight touchdown passes and five interceptions. He also rushed for three touchdowns.

He was traded to Minnesota with a seventh-round pick in exchange for a sixth-rounder and then started three games for the Vikings before getting benched for the final four games of the season.

Now he will get to face the Cardinals (although perhaps not playing) twice in 2024.

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

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DT Leki Fotu headed to Jets

Fotu gets a deal worth as much as $4 million to join the Jets.

The Arizona Cardinals have lost their first free agent of the offseason. After they agreed to terms with two defensive linemen, one of their own is on the way out.

According to multiple reports, Leki Fotu is headed to the New York Jets.

Fotu, a fourth-round pick in 2020, spent four years in Arizona. He became a starter last season, playing 11 games. He had a career-high 2.5 sacks to go with 28 total tackles, five tackles for loss and two quarterback hits.

He was the only player remaining on the team from the Cardinals’ 2020 draft class. Four years after that class, no one remains on the team.

He joins former San Francisco 49ers defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw in the AFC East.

According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, it is a $2.5 million deal (seemingly for one year) with a max of $4 million.

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

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Zach Ertz, Kliff Kingsbury reunited in Washington

Ertz gets a one-year contract worth up to $5 million to play for the Washington Commanders in 2024, where Kingsbury is OC.

The Arizona Cardinals fired Kliff Kingsbury as head coach over a year ago and released tight end Zach Ertz last season. The two will work together again.

According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, Ertz has agreed to a one-year contract to sign with the Washington Commanders, where Kingsbury is now the offensive coordinator under new head coach Dan Quinn.

Ertz, 33 years old, played in seven games for the Cardinals in 2023, catching 27 passes for 187 yards and a touchdown. He went on injured reserve with a quad injury before asking for his release, which was granted. He later signed with the Detroit Lions’ practice squad in the playoffs but was never elevated and did not play for them.

Kingsbury loved Ertz when he coached him in Arizona. After the Cardinals acquired him via trade in 2021, he caught 56 passes in 11 games, which give him a tie for the franchise single-season record for receptions by a tight end before Trey McBride broke that record last season.

The one-year deal is worth up to $5 million, Pelissero reports.

The Cardinals will face Ertz, Kingsbury and the Commanders at State Farm Stadium in 2024.

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

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Former Cardinals QB David Blough joining Commanders as coach

Blough will be the Commanders’ assistant QBs coach with Kliff Kingsbury there as offensive coordinator.

The Washington Commanders’ offensive staff has some familiar faces to Arizona Cardinals fans. Former Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury is Washington’s offensive coordinator and David Raih, who was the Cardinals’ receivers coach for the first two seasons Kingsbury was in Arizona, is a tight ends coach. They also added a former Cardinals player to their staff.

The Commanders announced that David Blough is their assistant quarterbacks coach. He apparently has decided to retire from his playing career.

Blough played for the Cardinals in 2022, starting the final two games of the season, and spent the offseason and preseason in 2023 with them.

He spent most of the 2023 season on the practice squad of the Detroit Lions.

Blough apparently impressed Kingsbury in the few weeks he was on the team in 2022, Kingsbury’s final year as the head coach.

Landing the coaching job is probably more money than what he made on the practice squad last season.

Blough went winless in seven NFL regular-season starts and was 0-2 for the Cardinals in 2022, but he did lead Arizona to two comeback preseason wins last year.

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

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No former Cardinals likely to play in Super Bowl with Chiefs, 49ers

Of the four former Cardinals on the 49ers and Chiefs, only Chiefs backup QB Blaine Gabbert is on an active roster.

The Arizona Cardinals definitely did not make it to the Super Bowl. Super Bowl LVIII is between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers.

There are former Cardinals players on both teams. They likely will not make an appearance.

Between the two teams, only one former Cardinals player is on an active roster. The rest are on their practice squads.

Who are the former players?

 

Former Cardinals LB Dwight Freeney makes Hall of Fame

Freeney played one season for the Cardinals in 2015 and led the team with eight sacks in 11 games.

At the NFL Honors awards show Thursday night in Las Vegas, the newest Pro Football Hall of Fame class was announced. One of the players who will be enshrined this year is pass rusher Dwight Freeney.

Freeney’s career was mostly spent with the Indianapolis Colts, but he did play one season for the Arizona Cardinals.

Freeney was an in-season free agent signing in 2015. He played in 11 games that season, collecting eight sacks and forcing three fumbles. His eight sacks led the team.

He was a key addition to the team. The Cardinals made it to the NFC Championship that season.

Freeney had 125.5 career sacks, including seven seasons with 10 or more.

He was a seven-time Pro Bowler and three-time first-team All-Pro.

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

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Kliff Kingsbury to return to Arizona in 2024 as Commanders’ OC

Kingsbury is the new OC in Washington, working with head coach Dan Quinn. The Cardinals host the Commanders in 2024.

Former Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury is back in the NFL. After it appeared he was going to be the offensive coordinator for the Las Vegas Raiders last week, contract talk broke down. However, he has already landed another position. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Kingsbury has been hired as the offensive coordinator for the Washington Commanders.

He now works for new Commanders head coach Dan Quinn, formerly the defensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys.

Kingsbury will likely be given weapons to work with. The Commanders have the second pick in the 2024 NFL draft and roughly $70 million in cap space. He will likely get to coach a top rookie quarterback like he did when he became the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals in 2019.

Kingsbury will get to face the Cardinals. The Commanders will play the Cardinals at State Farm Stadium in 2024, giving Kingsbury a homecoming of sorts and a revenge game.

Kingsbury was 28-37-1 in four seasons and took the Cardinals to the playoffs for the first time in 2021 since 2015. However, things fell apart in 2022 and he was fired after the season despite signing a five-year contract extension before the season.

Kingsbury was an offensive analyst and coached quarterbacks at USC for the last year. He worked with quarterback Caleb Williams, who will likely be drafted in the top two or three selections of the draft. Kingsbury potentially could get to coach Williams again.

Kingsbury’s new job likely means the Cardinals will save some money. They are on the hook for the four years of salary remaining on the contract extension they gave him but most coach contracts have offset language, meaning the Cardinals will only have to pay him the difference between his new salary in Washington and what he was owed by the Cardinals in his contract.

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

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Kliff Kingsbury emerges as leading OC candidate for Commanders

After backing out of consideration for the OC job with the Raiders, he is now a favorite to join Dan Quinn’s staff in Washington.

Former Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury appeared to be set to become the newest offensive coordinator for the Las Vegas Raiders as part of the staff of head coach Antonio Pierce. Contract talks broke down and he withdrew from consideration.

However, he now appears to be a favorite for another team looking for an offensive coordinator.

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, he is now a leading candidate to be the offensive coordinator for the Washington Commanders. The Commanders just hired former Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn to be their new head coach.

Should Kingsbury end up with the job, he would likely get to work with a top rookie quarterback. The Commanders have the second pick in the 2024 draft.

The Cardinals will face the Commanders in 2024, so Kingsbury would also get to have a revenge game.

Arizona is still on the hook for the remaining four years of the contract he had with the team. Likely offset language means that, if he got hired by the Commanders, the Cardinals would only have to pay him the difference between what he is owed and what the Commanders pay him.

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

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Kliff Kingsbury backs out of Raiders OC talks

Kingsbury backs out of consideration for the OC job in Las Vegas after contract talks break down.

Former Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury was set to become the new offensive coordinator for the Las Vegas Raiders under head coach Antonio Pierce. However, that will not happen.

After contract talks broke down, as reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Kingsbury withdrew himself as a candidate for the job.

Mike Jurecki reported that it came down to the number of years. Kingsbury wanted a three-year deal and the Raiders only offered two.

This doesn’t impact the Cardinals directly in terms of football, but it can impact them financially.

Because he was fired last offseason with five years remaining on his contract, the team is on the hook for the balance of the deal. However, offset language is common in NFL coaching contracts, so if he gets a job elsewhere in the league, the Cardinals would only pay the difference between his salary with a new team and what he is owed from his deal with Arizona.

Kingsbury was the Cardinals’ head coach from 2019-2022, going 28-37-1, making the playoffs once.

There is hope, though. He still could land a job elsewhere and is now a strong candidate to join the Washington Commanders.

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

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Ravens, Chiefs have 8 former Cardinals on their teams

Check out which former Cardinals players find themselves on the teams in the AFC Championship Game.

The Arizona Cardinals are obviously not in the playoffs but many former Cardinals players are. In the AFC Championship Game, the Kansas City Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens had a combined eight on their teams, between the active roster, reserves and practice squads.

Check them out below.