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While the Arizona Cardinals are preparing for the NFL Draft, they still must fill out their offseason roster for minicamps and OTAs before training camp rolls around. They added four players officially on Wednesday, signing wide receivers Jarett Dillard and Robert Gill, offensive lineman Paul Fanaika and tight end/long snapper Alex Gottlieb.
Dillard (5-11, 190) is a three-year NFL veteran who played in 21 games with five starts with Jacksonville and collected 35 receptions for 398 yards (11.4 yard avg.) and one touchdown. He originally entered the NFL with the Jaguars as a fifth round pick (144th overall) in the 2009 NFL Draft out of Rice. Dillard spent 2012 training camp with the Detroit Lions until he was released on August 27. While in college at Rice, Dillard set an NCAA record with 60 career TD receptions, surpassing the previous mark of 50 by Troy Edwards of Louisiana Tech (1995-98). He also caught at least one TD pass in 32 games, breaking the NCAA major college record of 27 games set by Ryan Yarborough of Wyoming (1990-93).
Fanaika (6-5, 327) is a former Arizona State standout where he started 35 of 48 games during his collegiate career. He was drafted by Philadelphia in the seventh round (213th overall) of the 2009 NFL Draft and spent the majority of his rookie season on the Eagles practice squad before being signed to Washington's active roster. He was with Seattle the past three years, including in 2011 when he played in three games. He was released by the Seahawks in 2012 following training camp on August 31.
Gill (5-10, 180) is a former track standout at Texas State where he ran the 400 meters and was part of relay teams in 4x200 and 4x400. He spent two seasons (2011-12) with the Kansas City Command of the Arena Football League, including when he caught 58 passes for 811 yards and 12 touchdowns as an AFL rookie in 2011. The San Antonio, TX native also spent time in arenafootball2. He most recently was with the AFL's San Antonio Talons during the 2013 preseason.
Gottlieb (6-4, 255) entered the NFL with Detroit in 2012 as an undrafted rookie free agent out of William & Mary. He was released by the Lions in their final roster cuts following training camp on August 31. While at William & Mary, Gottlieb received first-team All-CAA honors as a senior and junior. He totaled 75 catches for 905 yards and five touchdowns in 45 career games.
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