Cardinals’ Combine Chatter

Here are some between-the-lines guesses

Yesterday on X, I posted this tweet:

Here is what we fans can take for certain while listening to GMs and HCs at the Combine talk about their teams, draft plans and their players:

1. They are not going to give away their draft plans.
2. They are going to ‘talk up” their current players, whether they actually intend to keep them for the upcoming season, or not.
3. They are not going to gush about any outside free agents, especially those who appear to have ties with the team’s GM and/or any of the coaches.

All this said, for right or for wrong, here is what I deciphered from what I saw and heard from Monti Ossenfort and Jonathan Gannon:

1. There is a genuine interest in providing TE Trey McBride with a lucrative contract extension that should make him one of the highest paid TEs in the NFL. Per Monti:

2. They way that Michael Bidwill, Monti Ossenfort and Jonathan Gannon have heaped the highest of praise on Kyler Murray this off-season, suggests (at least to me) that if teams call to inquire about trade scenarios and possibilities, they would be willing and perhaps even eager to listen.

On Bickley and Marotta, Bidwill recently referred to Kyler as “a great quarterback.” Jonathan Gannon said:

If a HC is going to hype his QB, this is how you do it. Because either way, if they hold on to him or listen to trade offers —- this is the kind of excitement the coach wants to generate. Yet there is a degree of equivocation in what JG is expressing —- (a) “I really am”; (b) “I am not going to make any power statements” —- but then Gannon offers a power statement deluxe with ““he’s going to have a hell of a year next year.”

Go back to JG’s equivocations after his exit interview with Kyler —- how the HC exonerated the QB for the mistakes he made during the team’s 1-4 flop following the bye week —- and JG concluded the interview by telling Kyler that “good QBs play on good teams.”

Interesting that when asked about the Cardinals addressing QB options/additions, Monti said, “yeah, I think everything is on the table…”we’re not interested in just handing out jobs”. He said:

Perhaps Monti was simply talking about a QB2 competition, but could he have talking about QB1 competition as well?

3. The owner, GM and HC are all of the belief that B.J. Ojulari is going to be a major contributor to the team’s success and should be counted on as such. Bidwill said to Bickley and Marotta that he expects Ojulari to a “dominating player at his position.” Here is what JG expects:

To be clear, it would be absolutely fantastic for B.J, Ojulari and the Cardinals if he becomes a strong contributor the team’s success this season. Like everyone else, I am hoping like crazy for him. But to date, B.J. Ojulari has never been a dominating player (16.5 sacks in 3 seasons at LSU and 4 sacks in 1 season in AZ), thus putting those kinds of expectations on him coming off an ACL rehab is unrealistic.

The Cardinals had better sign a bona fide edge rusher in free agency and they had better draft one.

4. Jonah Williams appears to be very much in the Cardinals’ 2025 plans.

Monti had this to say:

We can all agree with Monti that when Jonah Williams did play, he played well. But he only played in 6 of the team’s 17 games. He has a prolonged history of knee injuries, some of which to his credit in Cincinnati he tried to play through. If Monti is sincere about looking forward to having Jonah Williams back, it would have to be on a revised salary, correct? By releasing him, the Cardinals could add $12.2M more room on the salary cap. Yes, they would have to eat $13M in dead cap that they could spread out over two seasons. But that money is not going away regardless.

Wouldn’t it just be sooo Cardinals if they keep Jonah Williams and then go ahead and draft Josh Simmons at pick #16 giving them two college left tackles who were switched over to right tackle in the NFL with both of them this season coming off serious knee injuries?

Monto insisted this week that “medicals are over-rated.”

Hmmm.

Man, Monti’s track record defies this notion —-

How about the 1st round picks in Tennessee he was in on —-

2020 —-T Isaiah Wilson (0 starts in NFL career)

2021 —- CB Caleb Farley (3 starts in 4 NFL seasons)

2022 —-WR Treylon Burks (17 starts in 3 NFL seasons)? After trading A.J. Brown to PHI.

In Arizona, B.J,. Ojulari (0 starts), Garrett Willams (17 starts in 2 seasons); Michael Wilson (25 starts out of 34 possible games in 2 seasons). These players have talent, no question. But don’t their medicals cause a degree of concern about their durability?

Out of all three of Monti’s 2023 Day 2 picks —- the team has gotten 42 starts combined out of all three out of a possible 102 combined games —- on a rebuilding team, no less. Need I contrast these start numbers again to the Rams’?

5. Cardinals appears to be doubling down on Bilal Nichols and Justin Jones. Per JG:

One would hope that neither Nichols nor Jones will be a starter in 2025. JG is touting “multiple roles” for Nichols and Jones —- does that mean he envisions one of both of them rotating in at nose tackle? Wouldn’t you much prefer that they re-sign Roy Lopez and finally draft a game changing space-eating slobberknocker in the middle?

6. Cardinals are looking for defensive linemen who have “inside and outside diversity.”

Per Monti:

Monti began by saying that in the past couple of drafts there has been a lack of quantity at the defensive line positions. However, Les Snead, Sean McVay and the Rams would disagree. Now Monti appears to be focused in on defensive linemen in the 2025 draft class, like the one he drafted last year in Darius Robinson, when healthy, who can “affect the passer” from “inside or outside.”

I think this “inside-outside” focus is a misguided. Starting with Monti’s 2-year avoidance of adding a big, physically imposing DT like the Eagles have three-fold in Jordan Davis, Milton Williams and Jalen Carter. The Eagles’ edges, the likes of Josh Sweat, Nolan Smith, Bradon Graham, Jalyx Hunt and Bryce Huff are not asked to kick down inside. Neither was Josh Reddick. The Eagles keep it simple —- if you are an edge —- you rush from the edge.

When will the Cardinals ever stop drafting defensive tweeners?

Monti’s criteria would suggest that Kenneth Grant, for example, is not an option. Nor Tyliek Williams or Darius Alexander. Would Monti really want to play Walter Nolen or Derrick Harmon on the edge? So, is he talking about Shermar Stewert or Nick Scourton?

8. Trade buzz! lol- leave it to Brett Kollmann!

9. Cardinals 2024 Report Card:

Team Travel: B —- 20th

Head Coach: A —- 8th

Ownership: D- —- 30th

Overall; 32nd

10. Cardinals’ Response to Report Card:

11. Player Interviews:

When players are asked whether they have already met with the Cardinals, the ones who say yes typically laud the “unique” nature of the film breakdowns and the energy that JG and coaches bring to the room.

For example, from Captain Jack:

12. Early list of players:

Your thoughts, intuitions and observations?