Well the Arizona Cardinals players, coaches and staff have left Flagstaff meaning that another training camp is officially in our rear view mirror. This will ultimately go down as a training camp that was dominated by the Boldin's trade demands but for now we can't forget that many other things were accomplished and some questions still need to be answered.

Compliment to Edge: Edgerrin James hasn't been the elite back that the Cardinals thought they were getting when the signed him as a free agent but he hasn't had much help either. His first year in the desert he ran behind a horrible offensive line and he's never had a legitimate backup to give him a break and share the load. The Cardinals seem to have given him some help this year though with rookie Tim Hightower. At the very least Hightower should take over the short yardage and goal line carries and he could be on the fast track to a future starting role. Hightower's shown quick feet, good vision and an unexpected burst that that has caused quite the stir among coaches and fans alike.

Defensive Depth: We all know that the defense fell of a cliff last year after injuries to several key players robbed the unit of their explosive play makers. They didn't have the depth to be competitive last year but things have changed in 2008. The front seven looks to have solid players two deep at nearly every position. The offseason acquisitions of Travis LaBoy, Clark Haggans, Bryan Robinson and Matt Stewart have infused quality depth in to a front seven that desperately needed it. All four of them have starting experience in the this league and their mix of youth and veteran leadership could help vault this defense into the upper half of the league.

BJ's Replacement: Heading into the offseason we weren't quite sure who would replace Bryant Johnson as the third receiver and the options included as many as five names. By the first preseason game though, the competition was all but over. Steve Breaston followed up an impressive mini-camp with an equally, if not more impressive training camp and preseason. He brings the kind of speed and quickness to the wide receiver corps that they haven't had in a while. He looks like he's poised for a great sophomore season and provide a unique compliment to the Pro Bowl duo of Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin.

Where's the Tight Ends?: Before camp the tight end group looked deep, talented and poise for a breakout, but with camp over and the pre-season halfway over we've seen very little the group. Leonard Pope was recovering from an ankle injury and even though he hasn't missed any practices, he hasn't shown much in game time to convince anyone that he's truly 100%. Ben Patrick looked like he was ready to challenge Pope for the starting job but a high ankle sprain against the Chiefs will keep him out until at least the opener. They even had to sign a tight end of the streets after Troy Bienemann couldn't get healthy. Through two games the tight ends have combined for 3 receptions for 23 yards and that kind of production won't get the job done.

Are the Special Teams really special?: The Cardinals lost four games by less than a touchdown and in those games Neil Rackers missed 3 field goals, including losses to Baltimore, Washington, and San Francisco. When the season ended the Cardinals were 31st in the league in field goal percentage and one of only ten teams to miss an extra point. There was some thought that Rackers would have a better year in 2008 because he likes Dirk Johnson as his holder and he's finally recovered from a sports hernia that plagued him in 2007, but Rackers hasn't been terribly good in the preseason with a missed extra point and kickoff that ended up out of bounds. The Cardinals need Rackers to return to the kicker who made over 93% of his field goals (including 6 of 7 from over 50) in 2005.

Who's on the Nose?: We knew going in that Gabe Watson would probably miss most of camp and we thought that Alan Branch would come into camp and perform well enough to stake some claim to keeping the job permanently. Much to our surprise though free agent veteran Bryan Robinson opened camp as the starter at nose tackle and he's been good enough to keep Alan Branch running with the second string. Robinson is not exactly to type of player that the coaching staff would want as the center of the defense so him starting is more of a result of what Branch has not done than what Robinson has done. Hopefully Watson will be ready to go by the start of the regular season because if he isn't the center of the defense could end up being a weakness for opposing offenses to exploit. Branch also needs to step up and show the ability that made the Cardinals trade up to snag him just one year ago.

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What do you guys think? Did camp make your expectations higher or lower heading into September 7th? Who else exceeded or fell below your expectations?

The Cardinals annouced today that they signed free agent tight end Brent Miller. Miller is a Arizona State alum and to make room on the roster, they released Troy Bienemann. Bienemann hasn't been able to practice because of an injured toe which is described as 'close a stress fracture.'

Miller (6'5 240) was undrafted out of Arizona State this year and is coming off a knee injury that caused him to miss a couple of games during his senior season. He totaled 22 receptions for 211 yards in 2007 and a touchdown. He's got good hands and adjusts to the ball in the air but isn't a play-maker (4.75 to 4.8 forty) by any stretch. He's a safety valve type of receiver rather than a down the field threat. Thoughts? I know we've got some ASU fans/alums out there, is this guy worth is salt or what?

The Cardinals went through two practices on Monday and while the first practice was relatively  un-noteworthy, the same can not be said about the second practice. It was a full-padded practice that included an 11-on-11, that's always entertaining, as well as various position drills.

Rookies Making an Impression Early: Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie got off to a slow start getting burned by Sean Morey but he bounced back with a couple of interceptions later in practice. He's raw and still has a long way to go before he's game ready, but his quickness and more importantly, his closing speed is simply amazing. There haven't been many mentions of Calais Campbell yet other than the note that he's working inside at tackle in nickel situations. The same (lack of news) can be said for Kenny Iwebema, although Al Johnson did mention in an interview how strong he was and that he should be able to excel against the run. Tim Hightower is living up to his early hype to this point and is taking a significant amount of reps with the second group. Several reports have mentioned that he's awfully quick for a man of his size. Early Doucet is/has benefited from Boldin's absence and has held his own so far and has looked hungry. The comparison's to Boldin won't stop either, this time with Leinart chiming in:

"I think he is a perfect mold of Anquan, same type of body, same type of play," Leinart said. "I think it is perfect for him to learn from a guy like that."

Tight End Situation: We thought just a couple of weeks ago that the tight end
position was one of the deepest positions on the roster and full of potential, but just four days into camp the mood has changed. Leonard Pope is still not 100%, although he did make a couple of acrobatic catches yesterday, and Troy Bienemann is still nursing an injured toe. The uncertainly regarding the health of those two led the staff to spend part of the day working out former Arizona State tight end, Brent Miller. With the depth, I doubt they'd sign another guy, but this could a way to motivate Pope and/or Bienemann to work harder to get back to 100% more quickly. Ben Patrick has made the most of Pope limitations thus far in camp. He got all of the reps with the first team while Pope was sidelined and seems ready to build off a promising rookie season.

Injuries: Nothing to worry about yet but there were still some notable names on the sidelines. Starting center, Al Johnson missed both practices on Monday after having his knee drained, but there is hope that he'll be back today. Anquan Boldin and rookie, Marcus Brown sat out for the second consecutive day and were classified as day-to-day by Coach Whisenhunt. If Boldin misses considerable time it won't be that big of a deal but for Brown, a promising prospect, he needs to be on the field to make the team. As I said eiarlier, Troy Bienemann has yet to practice and the same can be said for Gabe Watson and Monty Beisel. Keilen Dykes missed the first couple of days but I think he is back in practice now.

Quick Practice Notes:

• The QB's have a new drill that the fans seem to love in which they try to hit flags hanging from a stand. By most accounts, Leinart looked much more accurate during the second practice on Monday and even looked to be the most accurate, followed closely by Warner and much further back were St. Pierre and Morelli.
  
• Fitzgerald and Hood had a spirited practice, especially in position drills. They went back and forth trying to be physical with each other and both had some success with Fitz getting a TD in the corner of the end zone and Hood picking off the very next pass on a slant route. Competition like this makes everyone a better player and is certainly encouraging to see.
  
• Adrian Wilson is starting to irk some reporters because he's refused to talk to any media outlets so far.
  

Just one afternoon practice today and it should help some players who are saying that soreness is starting to set in. Today's practice is supposed to be full pads so there should be some good battles today. Thoughts? Encouraging camp so far?

As you flip your calendar over to the month of July today, take a highlighter and draw a big circle around the 25th. That will be the first official day of training camp and the first practice that is open to the public. Players will report on the 23rd (yes that means you, Boldin and Dockett) and they'll undergo a conditioning test on the 24th. With roughly three and a half weeks to go before camp though, I figured we could look at depth and potential battles at each position. We'll get the ball rolling with the tight ends.

The Cardinals have made a conscious effort to upgrade themselves at the tight end position in the past couple of drafts. After a couple of seasons trying to get by with undrafted free agents (Adam Bergen & Eric Edwards), the Cardinals finally decided to build the position through the draft. The 2006 draft would bring third rounder, Leonard Pope and the following draft they would use a seventh round pick on Ben Patrick. It was the first time that they had drafted two tight ends that close together since 1996, when they selected two in the same draft class (also a 3rd & 7th rounds). They also have an undrafted tight end in the mix, Troy Bienemann and an accomplished veteran force in Jerame Tuman. Looking towards 2008, the Cardinals seem to have the best group of tight ends to inhabit the desert in quite some time, but with four possible choices the biggest question could be: Who plays when and where?

Leonard Pope: Pope is the incumbent starter and should be first in line when the season starts. He hasn't quite lived up to the Cards' expectations yet, but he did show signs of becoming a legitimate receiving threat late in 2007 before going down with an injury in week 14. He has yet to catch 25 passes or top 250 yards but in his final 5 games last year, he started to develop into a reliable threat (14 receptions for 143 yards and 3 TDs). Those numbers aren't great but projected over a full season they be more than respectful at 45 receptions for over 450 yards and nearly 10 touchdowns. Pope still needs to become a more consistent blocker at the point of attack but with his height (6'8), he'll always be a red zone threat. He'll never be mentioned in the same breath with Gates, Gonzalez or Witten, but the Cardinals aren't asking him to be their #1 receiving threat. They just need him to work the middle of the field to keep the linebackers and safeties from concentrating solely on Fitz and Q.

Ben Patrick: Most fans said "who?" when they heard Patrick's name called late in the 2007 draft, but Patrick didn't disappoint in his rookie season. He stepped in and started 3 games (played in 8 total) when Pope went down and his play wasn't terrible for a 7th rounder trying to transition from D-II to the NFL level. His 7 receptions for 73 yards and two TDs didn't set the desert on fire but he did show some promise as both a receiver and a capable blocker. Patrick could eventually become a better blocker than Pope considering he's nearly 15 pounds heavier despite being four inches shorter. Patrick will have to fight for playing time though since Tuman was brought in to be the 'blocking tight end.'

Jerame Tuman: Tuman is another former Steeler to move to Arizona and most 
Cardinals' fans probably won't even notice his contribution to the team. Tuman isn't much of a receiving threat with just 43 receptions in nine NFL seasons, but he makes his living as a great blocker. Don't be surprised to see Tuman come in and serve as an extra lineman in short yardage and goal line situations. His greatest contribution to the Cardinals though could end up being his contributions to the development of Pope and Patrick. Tuman is a veteran who's been around a winning franchise his entire career and his experiences should help the younger guys develop the finer points of the game.

Troy Bienemann: Bienemann was undrafted after his final season at Washington State and an injury led to New Orleans cutting him prior to the 2006 season. He would sign with the Cardinals in April of 2007 and he would appear in all 16 games (including 4 starts). He had some decent moments but didn't do much to stand out. He'll likely have to have a great camp and preseason to make the opening day roster. He's a decent player but teams rarely carry four tight ends on the 53 man roster.

Alex Shor: The guy most of us have never heard of is a tight end who spent the summer of 2007 playing for the now defunct NFL Europe. He isn't much of a receiving threat but he's a capable blocker. His best case scenario for 2008 would be the practice squad but with three players who are the same age or younger than him at tight end, the deck is stacked against him.

Overall: The good news is that the Cardinals have very good depth at tight end with four players who have starting experience. The only thing that they lack is a dynamic, down the field threat. I'd expect Pope to have a breakout year, posting career highs in every category (as long as he stays healthy). With a new #3 receiver, look for Pope to come out of the gates strong until Leinart develops a repertoire with either  Breaston or Doucet. I wouldn't be terribly surprised if he's close to a double digit touchdown season. Patrick will get his share of playing time as well but will likely need an injury to Pope to get significant snaps. He'll still likely end up with double digit receptions and a couple of touchdowns, but not much more. Tuman will likely get most of his snaps on goal-line and short yardage plays and will probably end the season with just a handful of receptions. Bienemann, if he makes the roster, probably won't be active on game days unless one of the trio ahead of him is injured.

So what do you think about tight ends on the roster? Is this the best group in quite some time or just a group of four guys who'd have a hard time making any impact on another team?