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The Arizona Cardinals are looking to make some noise this season with their new quarterback and philosophy. There are some very interesting free agents that could take them in the right direction.
Last year was always thought to be what other sports consider a “rebuilding year” for the Arizona Cardinals. They were starting over with a brand new quarterback they took with the No. 1 overall pick, a new coach who brought an outside-the-box mentality for offenses, and a roster that was turning over from veterans to young players. It didn’t go terribly, as the Cardinals did improve to 5-10-1, with a win over the Seattle Seahawks on the road giving them new life.
There are even more changes to expect from the Cardinals. They have to choose between Kenyan Drake and a very expensive David Johnson this offseason. D.J. Humphries is a complicated player, but one that would be hard to replace at left tackle so they gave him an extension. Larry Fitzgerald is either going to play for the Cardinals or call it a career.
The Cardinals already have $39 million to use this offseason, and they have some major moves they can make to free up even more room. If they cut former star Patrick Peterson, that would open up another $12 million right there. Just making that move gives them $51 million in space and plenty of room to add across the board.
Of course, that means they’d have to replace the pieces they’re losing. The only top free agent coming up is Drake, and he’s a running back, so take with that what you will. We also expect an attempted restructuring of Johnson’s deal, so that could open up even more space.
There are a lot of holes to fill, but there are players out there that could absolutely fill them. We start with a short-term replacement for Peterson.