/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/63858465/usa_today_12679237.0.jpg)
As far as expectations go, the Arizona Cardinals have very low expectations from pundits around the league heading into 2019.
Their win total over/under sits at five, they’re favorites to end with a top five pick heading into 2020.
So, when articles like the CBS Sports piece by Will Brinson come out that discuss the fatal flaw of every team, I’m always interested to see where they go.
The obvious one is the offensive line, followed by the rookie quarterback, lack of depth along the defensive front seven and the relative youth of the wide receiver room.
No, for Brinson the fatal flaw on this team lies elsewhere…
Arizona Cardinals
Fatal Flaw: Kliff Kingsbury
It’s hard to find a truly fatal flaw for this team, because no one expects them to be good. You could go with the offensive line for sure; it was one of the worst units in football last year and while it’s improved it’s not some outstanding group yet. I would be fine if you said “pressure” generally because of what the selection of Kyler Murray does to this team. Instead I’ll take the coach -- Kliff Kingsbury is by all accounts very smart and very good at what he does scheming up offenses. But he’s also a first-year NFL head coach going against the best of the best when it comes to defensive coordinators. If for some reason he can’t manage to translate his abilities to the NFL level, this could get very ugly very quickly.
Kingsbury being bad would obviously be a flaw of this team, and doubts about him are warranted, he was for all intents and purposes a failure as a college coach. So, there is an inherent risk the Cardinals are taking in going with Kingsbury as their head coach.
However, I feel like a flaw is something that can be fixed… Kingsbury will obviously grow as a play caller, but is his inexperience really a flaw in the season? I mean, it’s expected and the Cardinals are not exactly coming off a strong season.
Maybe Kingsbury is the flaw, but I expect there to be an adjustment period and growth, which I find hard to be the flaw of this team this year.