Last offseason, the Cleveland Browns were hyped as a team who could surprise and be potentially a Super Bowl contender. They had a second-year quarterback coming off a promising rookie season as the No. 1 overall pick. They traded for a top receiver in Odell Beckham. They added defensive help.
Then they flopped, going 6-10.
The Arizona Cardinals appear to be much improved in 2020. They have the reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year in quarterback Kyler Murray, who was the No. 1 overall pick. They acquired a top receiver in DeAndre Hopkins and filled many defensive needs in free agency.
Nationally, they are an intriguing team, although few are giving them real Super Bowl consideration aside from Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson.
With some of the hype the Cardinals have gotten in the offseason, this has led to some comparisons to the 2019 Browns, who were arguably the biggest disappointment of the season.
One writer declared them the most overhyped team of 2020, comparing them to the Browns.
However, in doing so, the argument forgets some very important factors.
Yes, the Cardinals have a promising young quarterback. Yes, they acquired Hopkins like the Browns acquired Beckham. Yes, they both play in tough divisions.
However, the Browns had critical flaws. They had all of that talent but were led by Freddie Kitchens, who had never before been a head coach. They did not have continuity in coaches or schemes. While Kitchens was interim offensive coordinator in 2018 after Todd Haley was dismissed, he still had to run the offense using concepts Haley had. Kitchens had been a position coach for over a decade but never a coordinator or head coach.
He was in over his head. The Browns also had a new defensive coordinator.
They lacked continuity.
This is where the Cardinals are different.
Kliff Kingsbury enters his second year in the NFL. He might have been new to the NFL in 2019 but he was a head coach for six years before that in college. Their coaching staff and schemes are the same as last season. Offensively, their personnel is largely unchanged. Most of the defensive personnel is unchanged as well, although they added three veteran free agents and a rookie who all will get significant playing time.
The Cardinals are build to progress. They were not overhauled. The building blocks were in place. They will be better than in 2019. If everything goes well, they are talented enough to potentially improve like the San Francisco 49ers did last year.
The Cardinals are getting deserved hype but are not overhyped. And while they have parallels to the 2019 Browns, they really aren’t that alike.
[vertical-gallery id=439878]
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. 267
[protected-iframe id=”682ebb6e7ef6b83ea73b8875d2f5241d-112738498-106269283″ info=”https://api.spreaker.com/v2/episodes/27243565/download.mp3″ ]
Ep. 266
[protected-iframe id=”bcb747d5fc8df3747b9f1187680b5056-112738498-106269283″ info=”https://api.spreaker.com/v2/episodes/26365268/download.mp3″ ]