ROTB Roundtable: Tight Ends, Power Rankings, and Foreign Teams

The ROTB Writing Staff set out to answer two of these, as well as one regarding the NFL in general.

Don't forget to answer the questions yourself in the comments below!

1) Who do you think will start at TE when the regular season commences?

Alex Mann: John Carlson has impressed thus far. Housler has been Housler with his occasional big catch,  and his dropped easy ones. Ballard hasnt been neither good nor bad, and Niklas has struggled.  Carlson if he stays healthy, can be that guy that Housler was drafted to be. So if I had to choose my starter, its Carlson.

Jess Root: Assuming health doesn't factor in, it will be John Carlson and Jake Ballard. Carlson has been very good all offseason and the start of camp. He moves well and catches the ball well. He blocks okay. Ballard has done his job, too. Plus, rookie Troy Niklas still needs to catch up and Rob Housler doesn't block quite well enough, although he has improved.

Jason Mulkey: I believe the depth chart will go as fallows: (1.)John Carlson (2.)Jake Ballard (3.) Rob Housler, (4.) Troy Niklas

If the guys can stay healthy, this (^^) could be the depth chart at TE going into the season. A lot could change however depending on injury and performance. Considering he was a second round pick, I would assume they would want Niklas to work his way up to starting tight end, but that could take a while seeing as how he is a bit behind. Also, it would be interesting to see if Housler can perform well enough to keep his job, because the moment he drops a big pass, or has to miss time due to injury, the Cardinals could easily cut ties with him considering his inability to live up to his potential thus far throughout his career.

Randy Fields: The vets who have something I prove are playing like they have something to prove. Carlson will be the #1 and Ballard will be the #2.

2) This year, in Yahoo! Sports' power rankings, the Cardinals were the lowest ranked NFC West team, at #15.  Do you agree with this ranking?

Alex Mann: Its not entirely off base, but at the same time, ranking the Rams who finished behind Arizona, ahead, despite the fact that the really hadn't upgraded that much. Yes they return Bradford, but how long does that stay true? All NFCW teams deserve to be in the top 20, but St. Louis needs to prove it first.

Jess Root: It's fair. I don't necessarily agree, but it is fair considering Carson Palmer's age and up and down play in 2013, the losses on defense and the injuries they have to overcome. I would put them a couple of slots higher, but the biggest issue I have is how the Rams are higher. They have many questions on offense, including Sam Bradford. I just think the Cards should be a little higher than they are.

Jason Mulkey: No, I do not agree. I feel this team could be ranked in the top 10 easy seeing as how the offense seems to be much improved from a year ago, also due to the comfort level of all the players in this system. The defense suffered some key losses, but they have also gained, and I am confident that Todd Bowles will find a way to mask those losses, and be able to utilize other players strengths in order to maintain the Cardinals ranking as one of the top defenses in the league. Also, I believe that Bruce Arians has installed a different kind of fight in this Cardinal team, that will make them even more successful than ever before moving forward.

Randy Fields: I can't believe the Rams are ahead of the Cardinals. Just look at the win-loss column from last season and the number of returning starters for both teams. How much do they think the Rams are going to improve in comparison to the Cardinals? Turrible.

3) Reports indicate that the NFL is serious about placing a franchise in London.  If you had to award a team to a foreign city, which city would it be?

Alex Mann: Mexico City.  It's closer to the US, and they are an hour ahead of Arizona, and only an hour behind the east coast.  It'd be an easy travel for all NFL teams, and the jet lag would be less than traveling to England.

Jess Root: Simply, no. I don't like the idea of a team in franchise. I don't even like the regular season game out there. Why should fans give up a home game to watch their team? I have said it before, but Toronto or Mexico City makes more sense than London, at least to me.

Jason Mulkey: I do not like the idea of an NFL team in London at all. Even games played there in the regular season are just a waste of time. If we absolutely had to have a game there however, I would maybe play the Pro Bowl over there. Toronto makes the most sense to me at this point for a foreign city to have an NFL franchise considering they have teams from the NBA, MLB, and NHL.

Randy Fields: If it happens it will be Jacksonville. Prior to the stadium breaking ground for the Vikings I would throw them into the discussion. The Bills are staying in NY, so that leaves the Jaguars.