2020 Arizona Cardinals: 10 Acquisition Wishes

This year the Cardinals’ coaches and players kept saying “we’re a young team”—-which was true especially in the sense that the new offensive leader of the team was rookie QB Kyler Murray and with the trio of rookies who played significant snaps in the secondary.

However, the fact is—-the Cardinals’ 2019 combination of starters were the 5th oldest in the NFL.

One of the biggest mistakes the Cardinals have been making over the past 5 years is investing top dollars in aging veterans, many of whom are used as stopgap starters—-and then when the draft picks don’t develop quickly enough the stopgap starters remain or are replaced by other stopgap starters.

This needs to change—-as in now—-this year.

So, my wishes are based on 6 veteran acquisitions who are just entering their prime and can solidify their positions for the next 3-4 years. Here goes:

Free Agency:

1. T D.J. Humphries (26)—-make the contract work for both him and the Cardinals through incentive clauses.
2. C Connor McGovern (26)—-lock the center position down for years to come with a young, good player who Sean Kugler helped to develop.
3. DE Arik Armstead (26)—-ideally suited to give the Cardinals’ 34 defense what it’s been missing since Calais Campbell bolted town.
4. OLB Bud Dupree (26)—-a n athletic, aggressive 34 OLB who can rush, force the run and cover.
5. ILB Cory Littleton (26)—-has the length, strength and speed to be a force versus the run and to be a star in pass coverage.
6. S/CB Damarious Randall (27)—-adding Randall’s cover skills to this group would help improve the Cardinals’ pass coverage in a big-time way. A return to Arizona after his tumultuous year in Cleveland is just what he needs in order to get his career back on track.

The 2020 NFL Draft

• Trade: The Arizona Cardinals trade the #8 pick and RB David Johnson to the Tampa Bay Bucs for the #14 and #46 picks. My hunch is that BA wants to move up to take one of the top QBs in this draft and if Georgia’s Jake Fromm declares, QB hungry teams will want to trade up.

7. (#14)—-Cee Dee Lamb, WR, Oklahoma or Henry Ruggs III, WR, Alabama or K.J. Hamler, WR, Penn St.—-hit on a home run WR here. My hunch is that Lamb won’t run a blazing 40 at the Combine and he will slide out of the top 10. Regardless, Ruggs and Hamler are blazers. I also think that Leviska Shenault Jr., WR/RB , Colorado is a tremendous K-Raid fit.

8. (#40)—-Travis Etienne, RB, Clemson or J.K. Dobbins, RB, Ohio St. or D’Andre Swift, RB, Georgia—-hit on a home run RB here. Just don’t want to overpay Kenyan Drake because this RB group is loaded and it’s better to tap into RB talent in their first 4 years, rather than their 2nd 4 years.

9. (#46)—-Raekwon Davis, DE/DT, Alabama, Rashard Lawrence, DE/DT, LSU or Neville Gallimore, DE/DT, Oklahoma—-hit on a defensive front 7 dynamo here.

10. (#72)—-Ben Bredeson, G, Michigan or Shane Lemieux, G, Oregon or Damien Lewis, G, LSU—-hit on a future starter at guard here.

There we go—-these are my 10 acquisition wishes.

What are yours?

Happy 2020 my friends!!! #roaring20sforCards