Kevin Minter "Still hasn't met expectations"

No one was happier on day two of the NFL Draft than Kevin Minter, but I can tell you I was a close second.  Coming into day two of the draft, after getting one of the best offensive line prospects in a decade (insert eye roll here) the Arizona Cardinals hit the ball out of the park, "Grabbing Kevin Minter, my 27th rated player for the Cardinals, in the middle of the second round and adding a fourth round pick makes this not just a great selection, it makes it highway robbery."

That was then, and now heading into his fourth year, Minter knows more is expected, as he told Bickley and Marotta on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM. "Going into this season I need to take another step forward," Minter said. "I still feel like I haven’t really met my expectations yet."

That's the truth, when Minter was selected out of LSU everyone knew his ability was as the hammer next to an athletic Daryl Washington, and yet he could not get on the field his rookie season, even when Washington was suspended.  In 2014 he played, but not well, while nursing a pectoral tear that limited his range of motion in his upper body.

Yet, heading into the 2015 season, something needed to be shown, and it was... kind of.

Minter saw the field a ton, recording 110 tackles and 13 tackles for loss on the season, but he wasn't the force Cardinals fans expected.

If Deone Bucannon continues to grow, Kevin Minter will need to step his game up to keep pace, or he'll find himself looking for work with a different organization in 2017.