Bear Down Wildcats

Wow, can the Cardinals get a break?!?!

Murray is a near bust, and worse, signed to an unaffordable contract. Roster talent is on the wane. Kiem is still owed a fortune. The Cardinals are already a betting favorite to finish at or near the bottom of the standings going into 2023. And now former owner Michael Bidwell's harrassing and discriminating actions have brought on an investigation from the League.

If one paragraph can sum up the years of front office dysfunction: "All of this, in a story first reported by The Athletic, paints a spy drama portrait of the Cardinals that includes Bidwell ordering McDonough and then-coach Steve Wilks to use burner phones to contact Steve Keim while the then-general manager was serving a five-week suspension after pleading guilty to a DUI charge during the summer of 2018."

More negativity surrounding the Cardinals offseason –

“DeAndra Hopkins on the trade block is the worst kept secret in the NFL.” Hopkins going so far as to list the next teams he wants to play for. Now Budda Baker wants to be traded.

The Cardinals also have the lowest projected betting Win Total at 5.5 for next season, matched only by the Texans. And if the Cardinals indeed end up with the league’s worst W/L record next year, is it time to move on from Murray and use the #1 pick on Caleb Williams? I say YES.

Listened to Fox Sports radio's coverage of last night's 1st Round of the NFL draft. Of all people, FSR had Steve Keim co-hosting the broadcast as their lead draft analyst. WTF? The guy who dating all the way back to his days as Cardinals Director of Player personnel neglected the Cardinals OL season after season (who himself was once an OL at NC State) and whiffed on wasting how many 1st Rd picks to QBs who ended up busts?

Anyway, I thought the Cardinals new GM Monti Ossenfort pulled off a sneaky good first round drafting last night. Adding 1st and 3rd round picks for next year while landing the player they wanted all along - Ohio State OT Paris Johnson. NFL.com gave the Cardinals their highest 1st Rd draft grade - A:

"Analysis: The Cardinals wanted to trade out of No. 3 overall, and that's what they did, moving down nine spots in a deal with the Texans. They then traded back up with the Lions, jumping from No. 12 to No. 6 for Johnson, whose experience playing both guard and tackle means he can step in at right tackle. His powerful blocking up front will help protect Kyler Murray and boost the run game. The net effect of the two trades is the Cardinals picked up a 2024 first-round pick and still landed the player at No. 6 they presumably wanted all along."

For the first time anybody can remember, new Cardinals coach Jonathan Gannon blows off the media during draft week. Draft pressers make for the breeziest time a coach can get with the media, the one time during the offseason when even the most reactive fanbases (i.e. Eagles fans) will buy any positive spin from a coach - "We love these newly drafted players!"

ProFootballTalk.NBCsports.com discusses:

(Apparently there's an open tampering investigation I didn't even know about.)

"So why didn’t Gannon speak to reporters? Maybe he didn’t want to have to answer questions about his factually-inaccurate claim that the media in Philly wanted him fired for not blitzing enough. Or maybe he didn’t want to have to address his decision to take a call from Cardinals G.M. Monti Ossenfort at a time when such calls were prohibited by tampering rules."

The time in question is while Gannon was still the Eagles DC, prepping Philadelphia for Kansas City during the two weeks leading up to their Super Bowl matchup, while Gannon was also entertaining calls from Ossenfort for the Cardinals HC job.

"Ossenfort has owned up to the blunder. But it takes two to telephone tango. Gannon knew or should have known he shouldn’t be talking to Ossenfort, but Gannon did anyway. Reporters covering the Eagles would have plenty of questions about this. What else was Gannon doing to prepare for his next job when he should have been fully focused on finishing his last one the right way — by holding a double-digit, second-half lead and delivering a Super Bowl win."

Not much fan fare for the release of the Cardinals 2023 schedule. Of course it didn't help that this was dropped the same night the Nuggets knocked the Suns out of the playoffs.

I see five wins max, with hopefully one over the Rams.

0-17

Did the Cards decide to Keep Hopkins?

Alieberman wrote: ↑Thu May 18, 2023 12:16 pm Did the Cards decide to Keep Hopkins?

So far.

What in the fucking fuck are the Cardinals doing?

Instead of getting something for the best WR in football they just outright release him???

Unless there’s a story about to come out involving DHop abusing a puppy and a nun, I do not understand the thought process here. Someone help me make it make sense.

Tanking for Williams?

It's clear they are dumping salary and getting ready for the 2024 season.

azgreg wrote: ↑Fri May 26, 2023 2:32 pm Tanking for Williams?

It's clear they are dumping salary and getting ready for the 2024 season.

Tanking would mean trading him for at least a couple of draft picks. This is just malpractice. It’s like if your doctor diagnosed you with a very minor and mild form of skin cancer and then decided to choke you to death.

WTF?

Are they dumping salary?

CardiacCats97 wrote: ↑Fri May 26, 2023 4:22 pm

azgreg wrote: ↑Fri May 26, 2023 2:32 pm Tanking for Williams?

It's clear they are dumping salary and getting ready for the 2024 season.

Tanking would mean trading him for at least a couple of draft picks. This is just malpractice. It’s like if your doctor diagnosed you with a very minor and mild form of skin cancer and then decided to choke you to death.

From what I'm reading there were a few teams interested in trading for him but Hopkins wouldn't redo his deal so it couldn't happen.

EastCoastCat wrote: ↑Fri May 26, 2023 5:08 pm Are they dumping salary?

A little but more importantly taking hits to the cap space now to free it up in 2024.

CardiacCats97 wrote: ↑Fri May 26, 2023 4:22 pm Tanking would mean trading him for at least a couple of draft picks. This is just malpractice. It’s like if your doctor diagnosed you with a very minor and mild form of skin cancer and then decided to choke you to death.

Saw this posted by the radio guy who does the morning drive on 910am (Phx): "It takes a lot of mistakes to get nothing for a player like DHop. Kliff botched his usage, Keim overpaid him and Monti blew his leverage on Day 1."

Yes it's a money move to free up cap space, but somewhere someone (Raiders? Dolphins?) would've over traded for DHop with a high draft pick. More importantly a trade would've given the Cardinals control over where DHop ended up, as in not on a team likely to make them pay. Now watch DHop end up somewhere in their own division.

At least in getting nothing for DHop, Arizona likewise got him in the first place for darn near nothing from Houston.

“The Cardinals violated the rules; they’ve acknowledged it. The violation created a distraction. Depending on the total amount of time Gannon spent preparing for the interview, the distraction might have kept him from properly doing his job, which could have undermined the integrity of the Super Bowl.”

“So what does that mean for bettors who wagered on the Eagles to win or to cover? The Eagles were on track after 30 minutes to do both. The legal argument would spring from the basic reality that Arizona blatantly violated league rules by planting the seed that created the distraction for Gannon — the distraction that kept him from properly preparing the Eagles defense.”

Kyler Murray Takes Jab at Kliff Kingsbury, Steve Keim:

"Arizona quarterback Kyler Murray has been a big fan of what the new regime has done thus far, and that was made evident on the team's newest installment of their YouTube "Flight Plan" series where the Cardinals followed Murray around in the offseason to document his recovery from a torn ACL."

"It's pretty different for me, but it's been seamless. Me and JG [Jonathan Gannon] hit it off, he sees things the way I see things. He can relate to the guys and he genuinely feels like he believes in the guys and trying to get them better, me better. I feel like you'll run through a wall for that type of guy, and that's the type of energy that he brings."

"I feel free in a sense, especially with the change of upstairs [general manager] in the organization. I feel like they've done a great job ever since they came in. Holding people accountable, the leadership, they're really trying to build something from the ground up," said Murray, who also said many things Arizona did last season weren't sustainable."

Murray sounds like he's matured overnight.

Head Coach Jonathan Gannon coming down from shrooms in front of whole team:

Cardinals defense getting a penalty on almost every play.

Bold strategy Cotton.

I'm ready for the Josh Dobbs era to be over.

UAEebs86 wrote: ↑Sun Sep 10, 2023 12:24 pm I'm ready for the Josh Dobbs era to be over.

Just three more games.....maybe.

Operation Tanking for Caleb has been activated.

I'd rather play Tune and see what he's got.

UAEebs86 wrote: ↑Sun Sep 10, 2023 1:06 pm Operation Tanking for Caleb has been activated.

You're doing it wrong!

UAEebs86 wrote: ↑Sun Sep 17, 2023 2:12 pm

UAEebs86 wrote: ↑Sun Sep 10, 2023 1:06 pm Operation Tanking for Caleb has been activated.

You're doing it wrong!

The Giants are turrible.

Cardinals gonna Cardinal.

UAEebs86 wrote: ↑Sun Sep 17, 2023 3:52 pm Cardinals gonna Cardinal.

Looks like it.

Marquis Brown just got called for an offensive PI "pick" without actually touching anyone. SMDH

So are the Cards going to draft their third QB with a top-10 pick in the last 6 years?

Maybe don’t draft a midget or the dude with a blow-up hot tub in his dorm room this time.

Chicat wrote: ↑Mon Nov 27, 2023 9:27 am So are the Cards going to draft their third QB with a top-10 pick in the last 6 years?

Maybe don’t draft a midget or the dude with a blow-up hot tub in his dorm room this time.

Well I’m sure you could draft better.

(I was not being sarcastic. I’m 100% SURE you could draft better!)

Alieberman wrote: ↑Mon Nov 27, 2023 11:21 am

Chicat wrote: ↑Mon Nov 27, 2023 9:27 am So are the Cards going to draft their third QB with a top-10 pick in the last 6 years?

Maybe don’t draft a midget or the dude with a blow-up hot tub in his dorm room this time.

Well I’m sure you could draft better.

(I was not being sarcastic. I’m 100% SURE you could draft better!)

As a Rams fan I think y’all are doing great and wouldn’t change a thing.

Chicat wrote: ↑Mon Nov 27, 2023 11:28 am

Alieberman wrote: ↑Mon Nov 27, 2023 11:21 am

Chicat wrote: ↑Mon Nov 27, 2023 9:27 am So are the Cards going to draft their third QB with a top-10 pick in the last 6 years?

Maybe don’t draft a midget or the dude with a blow-up hot tub in his dorm room this time.

Well I’m sure you could draft better.

(I was not being sarcastic. I’m 100% SURE you could draft better!)

As a Rams fan I think y’all are doing great and wouldn’t change a thing.

As a Bears and Cardinals fan... I go back and forth on which team is a more utter disgrace. It's a tough call.

Alieberman wrote: ↑Mon Nov 27, 2023 11:47 am

Chicat wrote: ↑Mon Nov 27, 2023 11:28 am

Alieberman wrote: ↑Mon Nov 27, 2023 11:21 am

Chicat wrote: ↑Mon Nov 27, 2023 9:27 am So are the Cards going to draft their third QB with a top-10 pick in the last 6 years?

Maybe don’t draft a midget or the dude with a blow-up hot tub in his dorm room this time.

Well I’m sure you could draft better.

(I was not being sarcastic. I’m 100% SURE you could draft better!)

As a Rams fan I think y’all are doing great and wouldn’t change a thing.

As a Bears and Cardinals fan... I go back and forth on which team is a more utter disgrace. It's a tough call.

I would suggest . . . . . . therapy.

Chicat wrote: ↑Mon Nov 27, 2023 12:02 pm

Alieberman wrote: ↑Mon Nov 27, 2023 11:47 am

Chicat wrote: ↑Mon Nov 27, 2023 11:28 am

Alieberman wrote: ↑Mon Nov 27, 2023 11:21 am

Chicat wrote: ↑Mon Nov 27, 2023 9:27 am So are the Cards going to draft their third QB with a top-10 pick in the last 6 years?

Maybe don’t draft a midget or the dude with a blow-up hot tub in his dorm room this time.

Well I’m sure you could draft better.

(I was not being sarcastic. I’m 100% SURE you could draft better!)

As a Rams fan I think y’all are doing great and wouldn’t change a thing.

As a Bears and Cardinals fan... I go back and forth on which team is a more utter disgrace. It's a tough call.

I would suggest . . . . . . therapy.

Nah... I have my fandoms to the Cubs and Suns to even me out.....

Thank god you don’t own a gun.

Chicat wrote: ↑Mon Nov 27, 2023 9:27 am So are the Cards going to draft their third QB with a top-10 pick in the last 6 years?

Maybe don’t draft a midget or the dude with a blow-up hot tub in his dorm room this time.

So I guess you don't think Fifita is gonna get much quality time in the NFL?

RichardCranium wrote: ↑Tue Nov 28, 2023 8:27 pm

Chicat wrote: ↑Mon Nov 27, 2023 9:27 am So are the Cards going to draft their third QB with a top-10 pick in the last 6 years?

Maybe don’t draft a midget or the dude with a blow-up hot tub in his dorm room this time.

So I guess you don't think Fifita is gonna get much quality time in the NFL?

Not with how Murray has progressed.

The Cards have had a pretty solid free agency period so far. Nothing flashy but getting better at a lot of positions, especially the defensive line.