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The Arizona Cardinals made the right decision, I want to get that out of the way first.
From a financial standpoint, they could not afford to pay Campbell what the Jaguars did, especially at his age.
However, the Cardinals are going to miss more than just Campbell’s on field presence, which is one of the best in the NFL. No, they are also going to miss Calais Campbell, the leader of the Arizona Cardinals defense.
When you look at the Jacksonville Jaguars, they have been among the worst franchises in the NFL for the past decade.
Since 2008, they have one season at .500, no seasons over .500 and zero playoff appearances.
In fact, since 2011 they have not won more than five games in a season.
Enter Campbell.
While he was a part of the 2008 Super Bowl team for the Arizona Cardinals and the 10-6 2009 team, he also helped turn around the franchise after their three year stretch where they won 18 games.
He understands what it is like to push a team out of the bottom and get them back on top.
You can see it happening in the offseason already:
Spoke to Doug Marrone about all things Jags. He was cautious about doling out praise until we got to free agent addition Calais Campbell. pic.twitter.com/anqu6I75oa
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) June 14, 2017
We know what it is like as Cardinals fans to be a continual laughing stock of the NFL. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone not in the NFC West,
What Campbell brings to the Jaguars is something that can’t be found on the stat sheet. It is something the Jags have desperately needed over the last decade. Here’s hoping he can help rescue another franchise.