Before the 2009 season officially starts for the Arizona Cardinals in 2 days, here's a look at some of the power rankings from around the web. You can see where the Cardinals got screwed by ESPN, ESPN's rankings, along with a few other websites. This will also be a weekly segment once the season kicks off, just to see what the critics are saying and where they rank us throughout the year. Here are the Pre Preseason rankings that have been posted so far this off season:
ESPN.com- 12th
The defending NFC champs barely crack the top 12 and that came only with an assist from their generous divisional blogger. No respect. (Sando)
Walterfootball.com- 14th
The Cardinals caught fire and made an incredible run to the Super Bowl. They're returning most of their players, and they just had an incredible draft. The problem is, Super Bowl losers have performed very poorly the following year for whatever reason. There's no reason to believe Arizona won't suffer a similar fate.
SI.com- 12th
Just an unsettling offseason, so far. I love the free-agent signing of Bryant McFadden to pair at corner with Dominique Rogers-Cromartie(does any other corner combination in football contain 13 syllables?), but the Cards are too unsettled right now. Will Boldin or Dockett, or both, shoot their way out of town? Will Beanie Wellsbe a good fit for the two-headed running game, along with Tim Hightower? One thing we do know: Kurt Warner and Larry Fitzgerald will be Brady-Moss-like prolific as long as Warner can stay healthy.
CBSSports - 5th
Fall off after the Super Bowl? Not a chance. The Cardinals are built to win for a while, or as long as Kurt Warner stays on the field.
FoxSports - 5th
The most impressive achievement from last year's Super Bowl run was breaking through on a culture change where many had failed before head coach Ken Whisenhunt and QB Kurt Warner.
NFL.com - 9th
The Cardinals had some key losses in offensive coordinator Todd Haley and defensive end Antonio Smith, but they have playmakers on offense and the addition of Chris "Beanie" Wells should help the running game. This is a fragile situation and it remains to be seen if they can handle the success they had in 2008. There might be too many veterans complaining about new contracts to feel comfortable about the placement of the Cardinals at No. 9 on this list.
Interesting rankings for the Cardinals. Evidently the defending NFC champions can't place better then 5th. Critics will always be there but hopefully once the season starts these rankings will change. Do you agree with where the Cardinals were placed? Where would you place them?