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Arizona Cardinals End-Of-Season Awards 2022

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Arizona Cardinals Awards

The Arizona Cardinals finished the 2022 season with an appalling record of 4-13. The disappointing season came after the Cardinals made the playoffs in 2021. With the team missing its goals, owner Michael Bidwill has hit the reset button on his front office and coaching staff. Long-time GM, Steve Keim, has left the team while HC Kliff Kingsbury was also fired. There are some excellent GM candidates as well as some equally competent potential HCs who can take over the franchise’s operations for 2023.

The disappointing year was characterized by agonizing losses to the Los Angeles Chargers, Philadelphia Eagles, and Denver Broncos, among others. But it also flashed hope at times, with a nail-biting victory over the Las Vegas Raiders and a complete performance over the New Orleans Saints. In a year of few positives, some players still showed their character and competitive mentality. This was particularly pertinent in the weekly Hard Knocks episodes.

Arizona Cardinals End-Of-Season Awards

Most Valuable Player: Budda Baker

In the traditional sense, the Cardinals’ MVP is Kyler Murray. As the quarterback, Murray is the most influential player on the team. This was evidenced in his spectacular individual effort in the victory over the Raiders. Murray’s absence for the final stretch of the season also demonstrated his importance to the team.

However, the impact of Budda Baker simply cannot be understated. He is not the team’s quarterback, but he is their heart and soul. Baker is one of the Cardinals’ faces of the franchise, and he leads the team with passion and competitiveness. His leadership was further demonstrated when he suffered multiple serious injuries but played through them.

While Baker’s intangible qualities are superb, his performance on the field is also worthy of this award. The hybrid safety once again demonstrated that he can do it all, managing 111 tackles, two interceptions, and one forced fumble in 15 games. He was excellent at stopping the run and, once again, demonstrated his high motor by making plays all over the field.

Offensive Player of the Year: James Conner

The Cardinals offense disappointed greatly this season, making the choice of an offensive player of the year difficult. DeAndre Hopkins has a strong case, but his suspension makes it hard to choose him. Again, Murray is a good choice, but his season-ending ACL injury makes it difficult to name him as the team’s offensive player of the year. James Conner, therefore, seems an apt selection.

Despite struggling with some injuries in the middle of the season, Conner proved why the Cardinals offered him a three-year extension in the off-season. With the team losing Chase Edmonds, it was Conner’s time to step up. He was the team’s lead back in a committee that originally included Eno Benjamin, Darrel Williams, Keaontay Ingram and Jonathan Ward. On the season, Conner had 1,082 all-purpose yards and eight total touchdowns. It was certainly a reduction in output from his 18-touchdown 2021 season, but it was a strong year nevertheless, given the circumstances. Conner was particularly important to the team after Murray’s ACL injury as the team leaned on him to help Colt McCoy, Trace McSorley and David Blough.

Defensive Player of the Year: Zaven Collins

Defensively, the Cardinals were up and down. The numbers say they were one of the worst defenses in most of the main categories. However, they made some splash plays this season and kept some tough games close. Aside from Baker, the Cardinals do not have any superstar talent. They just have a core of fairly productive players, making this a tough selection. The candidates for this award included Isaiah Simmons, J.J. Watt, Zach Allen, and Byron Murphy. Zaven Collins, however, is a fitting recipient.

In his rookie year, Collins struggled vastly. It ultimately meant that the Cardinals rolled with Jordan Hicks as the mike linebacker. This year, Collins stepped up his game. He was a big part of Arizona’s defensive successes, and he looks to be improving still. While he does not boast the freakish versatility of Simmons, his steady year at the heart of the Cardinals defense cannot be overlooked. This year, Collins managed 100 tackles, two sacks, 11 TFLs, one interception, and one forced fumble.

Simmons deserves some praise too. His year was, statistically, similar to Collins’. He made 99 tackles and also had four sacks, five TFLs, two interceptions and one forced fumble. However, Simmons was liable to mistakes at the start of the year and found it difficult to get consistent playing time until the Cardinals needed his versatility to cover up the holes left by injuries. He finished the season having taken snaps at inside linebacker, outside linebacker, slot corner, outside corner and free safety.

Offensive Rookie of the Year: Trey McBride

Trey McBride had a quiet start to the year. He was deemed a ‘luxury’ selection in the 2022 NFL Draft due to the team having Zach Ertz already. However, Ertz picked up a season-ending injury towards the middle of the season, leaving McBride as the TE1. While he struggled to live up to the billing initially, McBride slowly came out of his shell to end the year. His best game came against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 17. Along with 78 yards on seven catches, the rookie tight end also got his first career touchdown. The expectations are high for the young tight end in 2023.

Defensive Rookie of the Year: Myjai Sanders

The 2022 NFL Draft saw the Cardinals select two (very different) EDGE rushers to fill the void left by Chandler Jones’s departure. Myjai Sanders is a bendy speed rusher while Cameron Thomas is primarily a bull rusher with inside versatility. Both had very strong seasons, notching three sacks each (though Sanders also had a forced fumble). Sanders is the team’s defensive rookie of the year due to his playmaking ability. He had impressed coaches earlier in the season and his increasing game time showed just why the Cardinals drafted him. He also flashed some versatility as DC Vance Joseph dropped him into coverage for disguised looks a few times too. With both Sanders and Thomas, the Cardinals pass rush has good potential heading into 2023 (though Will Anderson Jr. would still be an excellent addition).

Comeback Player of the Year: J.J. Watt

J.J. Watt’s retirement made a real splash in the NFL world. He is one of the greatest to ever do it and will forever be a Cardinals and Houston Texans legend. It was a shame that his final year was on an uncompetitive team. However, throughout the year, he showed his leadership and commitment, resulting in a fantastic farewell.

The all-time great was subject to criticism in the off-season due to his injury record. In 2021, Watt suffered multiple tears in his shoulder that meant that he missed half the season, returning only on a snap count in the Wild Card embarrassment. This year, Watt came back with a fire. He accrued 12.5 sacks, one forced fumble, 18 TFLs and seven pass defenses. It was a wonderful individual year to cap off a Hall-of-Fame career.

Most Improved Player: Zach Allen

With Watt leaving, the team is turning its attention to Zach Allen. Allen improved vastly this season and was one of the league’s best pass-rushing DTs. He plays a similar role to Watt and has spoken highly of how Watt has mentored him throughout 2021 and 2022. On the season, Allen had 47 tackles, 5.5 sacks, 10 TFLs and eight pass defenses. His swatting was particularly reminiscent of Watt, as demonstrated in the Carolina Panthers game.

Allen is a free agent this off-season. His re-signing should be a priority for the new Cardinals front office as he has demonstrated that he has pass-rush upside from an interior position. This is a valuable asset for any team, and he will be able to soften the blow from Watt’s departure.

Best Newcomer: Marquise Brown

The Cardinals had an infamously dormant off-season. It is now revealed that part of this may have been down to Keim’s constant absence from the facility. The result was that the Cardinals made very few moves outside of some re-signings and depth pieces. The biggest splash they made was the trade for Marquise Brown from the Baltimore Ravens.

While Brown missed some time this year, he was still an excellent asset for the team. This was especially the case when the team was without Hopkins to start the year. Brown and Murray reignited their Oklahoma connection and, at the beginning of the season, Brown looked like one of the league’s premier receivers. On the season, Brown managed 709 yards and three touchdowns on 67 catches.

The Cardinals have activated Brown’s fifth-year option so he will be with the team in 2023. If Hopkins is traded, it is likely that Brown will be the team’s WR1. With the young receiver still improving, the Murray-Brown connection could be one to watch for years to come. If Brown can stay healthy for all of 2023, he looks like he could surpass 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns.

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