With a close win, Kurt Warner has won RotB's Offensive Player of the Year award. Just to recap, Steve Breaston has won Most Improved Player, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie won Rookie of the Year, Karlos Dansby won Defensive Player of the Year, and now Kurt Warner has won offensive honors (All RotB awards can be seen on the left side of the page). The race was close with Larry Fitzgerald not far behind, along with Anquan Boldin and Reggie Wells in a distant last place.

Apparently all the contract talk has not turned Cardinals' fans away from Kurt Warner, as he won this award. Either way, he was a main reason for appearing in the super bowl and nearly got the win for us. When it all comes down to it, he made the 2008 as special as it was and had the best season for a quarterback in Arizona Cardinals history. Now that he has officially decided to come back for another two years, he has another chance to get the Cardinals a ring and continue on with the team's newly found success.

Kurt did what past quarterbacks were unable to do in the desert; lead a worthy team to the super bowl, and make the franchise more respectable then it has ever been before. Not only that but he himself, may have changed how fans feel about the team and create a hype about the Cardinals. He now holds 5 Cardinals' records and nearly took the record for most yards in a season. Most critcs figured Warner would get injured somewhere down the line, and not be able to play in every game. He proved them wrong when he started every game of the season, the playoffs, and later at the Pro Bowl. The season was magical and will be remembered as one of the greatest in Arizona Cardinals history.

Karlos Dansby had a successful 2008, helped the defense throughout the playoffs, played in the Super Bowl, was named a Pro Bowl alternate, won a CotW in 2008, and now he has won RotB's Defensive Player of the Year Award (Enjoy the cheesy RotB Award I created to the left). This was one of the closest races yet, with Adrian Wilson and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie coming up short.  

Karlos Dansby is one of the most dynamic linebackers in the NFL and is extremely vauable to the Cardinals organization. Evidence of this is Dansby getting the Cardinals franchise tag for the second year in a row. CG broke down Dansby in his State of the Roster for the inside linebackers:

 

Dansby entered the 2008 season under a one year (franchise) contract knowing that he was basically auditioning for every team in the NFL and he responded with the best season of his career. Not only did he play a full season for this first time, he topped 100 tackles and was at his best when the Cardinals really needed him. He again showed the ability to make plays all over the field and his athleticism allows him to excel in pass coverage while also being a force in the running game. While some may argue, Dansby looked like the best defensive player on the roster for parts of the season. 

He's young and has a very bright future. Dansby is on the rise and has the talent to become one of the most unique linebackers in the league. Dansby can play the pass, stop the run, and get after the quarterback. He's been regarded as the play maker of the defense. Hopefully he will become the face of the franchise and one of the more dominant linbackers in the NFL.

The second Arizona Cardinals off season award goes to Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie for the Arizona Cardinals 2008 Rookie of the Year. He can add this award to his two CotW awards, here and here.  Like DbacksSkins said, DRC ran away with this one. He collected over 80 votes from RotB's readers and never looked back. His competition was Tim Hightower and Calais Campbell. Tim got a decent amount of votes but Campbell didn't stand a chance. DRC deserved a win for his regular season production and his hand in helping the Cardinals get to the Super Bowl.

DRC's production didn't begin until halfway through the season when he was finally named the starter against the San Francisco 49ers. He was said to have a high learning curve and displayed that as the season progressed. His speed and athleticism showed to be valuable, as he was able to regain speed and catch up to receivers at will. He was also capable of making plays on the ball, as he finished the year with 19 passes defensed and 4 interceptions. The 4 picks were a league lead among rookies, and Rodgers-Cromartie actually put up better averages in just four post season games. He finished the post season with 20 tackles, 9 passes defensed and 2 interceptions. Perhaps the biggest impact Rodgers-Cromartie had was his effect on other corner backs on the team. Roderick Hood and Ralph Brown changed their identity in the post season and played at another level. It could have been the motivation of a rookie out playing them that sparked their game play. DRC was outstanding throughout the playoffs and although he struggled in the Super Bowl to the eventual MVP Santonio Holmes, he showed flashes of being a "shut down" corner back in the NFL. He knew what he was capable of:

This is pretty much a dream come true for a kid from Bradenton...They all said I was too small...I think they were just saying that because they didn't know who I was and they didn't think somebody could just sneak up like that.

Next season has high hopes for the soon-to-be second year pro. With a full season under his belt, he could put up monster numbers. Just take his last 8 starts of 2008 for example. If we multiply them by 2, his projected stats for the 2008 season would have been 58 tackles, 28 passes defensed, and 8 interceptions. That would've been a pretty stellar season for a rookie, and perhaps this is a preview for next year. The Cardinals have the possibility of bringing in a veteran to play along side DRC as well. Adding depth at the corner position is important to this defense. Only time will tell, and we can all hope that this years draft brings in another rookie to have a big impact in 2009. 

With a landslide victory, Steve Breaston wins RotB's Most Improved Player of the Year. Steve, or "Boobs", as Hawk would call him, came into the season with an unsure role on the team. The problem that was faced was whether or not he could fill in as a full time receiver. Steve Breaston came to the Cardinals last year as a fifth round draft pick out of Michigan. The Cardinals drafted him hoping to get a home run threat on kickoffs, and essentially, that's what they got. He immediately made a difference in the return game, and later took a punt back against the Pittsburgh Steelers. It was the Cardinals first punt return in over a decade. When the 2008 season began, Breaston's competition was Jerheme Urban and Early Doucet. Breaston jumped on the scene week one with 40 yard bomb against the 49ers. When teammate Anquan Boldin went down, Steve filled in with a couple 100-yard games. On the last game of the season, Breaston caught enough passes to put him over the 1,000 yard mark in just his second season in the league. Breaston was quiet in the playoffs but when it mattered, he stepped up in the Super Bowl and kept more then one drive alive. You could say he answered all the questions because for week in and week out, he continually caught passes and kept the Cardinals offense moving. In honor of his duties this year, Steve Breaston is RotB's Arizona Cardinals Most Improved Player of the year.

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