The Arizona Cardinals struggled in 2023 but were competitive. They won four games but played hard and made things difficult for most of their opponents.
Hoping to take a step forward and compete for the postseason in 2024, they worked to improve the players on the roster. Four positions in particular have seen big improvements.
Which four position groups are the most improved?
The defensive line was a mess last season. The year began with question marks. By the end of the season, Roy Lopez was the best player with a bunch of guys with minimal experience.
Lopez is a fine player and has started many games, but he isn’t someone you want as your best interior defender.
They added Justin Jones and Bilal Nichols in free agency, both of whom are legitimate, solid NFL starters. They brought back L.J. Collier. They signed Kyiris Tonga. And they added Darois Robinson in the first round of the draft.
Lopez is now a guy who will have to compete to make the team one of the last rotational guys.
At the end of last season, there was Greg Dortch and Michael Wilson making a few plays, but most of the offense went to running backs at tight ends.
Entering last season, there was optimism, but the season ended with Marquise Brown on injured reserve and Rondale Moore disappointing.
The Cardinals didn’t make many moves at receiver. Before the draft, they only added Chris Moore, a move that won’t excite any fan.
But they drafted Marvin Harrison Jr. fourth overall and then signed Zay Jones. Assuming Harrison can be very good, this receiver room is suddenly not an embarrassment. Harrison, Jones and Wilson, plus Dortch, make a nice quartet, especially when you consider Trey McBride will make plays as a tight end.
Last season, after cutting Marco Wilson, the Cardinals’ cornerbacks were Antonio Hamilton and rookies. Hamilton has been replaced by Sean Murphy-Bunting, a legitimate starting corner. Garrett Williams, who played well over the final half of last season as a rookie coming off an ACL tear, returns. Then the Cardinals drafted Max Melton in the second round and Elijah Jones in the third round. Kei’Trel Clark and Starling Thomas will figure in the mix, but there is now one solid starter, one promising young player entering year 2 and at least one promising rookie.
The Cardinals made one move but saw improvements in two spots. They traded for Desmond Ridder, giving them a known NFL-caliber quarterback as their backup, rather than a fifth-round rookie in Clayton Tune.
And Kyler Murray is fully healthy in the offseason. His second-half return went from average to very good at the end of the year.
Murray and Ridder are a far better duo than Josh Dobbs and Tune, which was how the Cardinals started last season.
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