Cardinals Defense
Player Profiles: QB | RB | WR | TE | K | D/ST |
Photo By: Icon SMI
Cardinals Defense
Defensive Coordinator: Todd Bowles
| Twitter News | Team Schedule |
Fantasy Football Outlook: While it was probably time for Ken Wisenhunt to go, I’m disappointed Arizona didn’t hold onto defensive coordinator Ray Horton. Coming over from the Steelers Horton seemed to bring more of a physical and attacking brand of football to the desert, and that was one of the bright points of this franchise over recent years.
While things will improve on the offensive side of the ball, I can’t say the same for the defense. Star linebacker Daryl Washington could be in some big trouble after he was arrested in suspicion for beating up his ex-girlfriend whom he has a child with.
Before that news, Washington was suspended for the first four games of the season for drugs. Not good, but the team responded by bringing back Karlos Dansby and while teams stayed away from giving him a multi-year deal (31 years old) his game is still solid and he was one of the teams best players before going to Miami.
The Cardinals will have a good defense, but the NFC West is probably the hardest division in football and the Seahawks, 49ers and Rams are only getting better on offense. It will be hard to start the Cardinals defense when they play division games, so look to them as a matchup play off the waiver wire.
| Sacks | Int’s | Fumbles | Avg PA | |
| 2013 Projected Stats | 34 | 18 | 13 | 23.5 |
2013 Fantasy Football Draft Prep: ADP's | Rankings | Mocks | Cheat Sheets + Auctions
To help you get ready for draft day you will notice articles for ADP advice, cheat sheets, mock drafts and projected stats for the Cardinals team defense here. During the season, you can also find regular weekly ranking articles at this section as well.
Summer of 2012: Fantasy Projections
Defensive coordinator Ray Horton came over from Pittsburgh last year, and his squad clearly struggled with a lockout shortened offseason. Factor in that star corner Patrick Peterson was at the begging of his career, and it’s understandable why this group had so many problems.
Fast forward to the end of the year and it was a different story as Peterson had evolved into a shutdown corner, playing man coverage without help against the opponent’s top receiver.
This helped the defense shift and extra man to help out on the other side of the field, and changed the defense. Quickly, the Cardinals became a force, and that trend should continue this year.
I’m not in love with the Cardinals safeties, and they will get burned on deep routes at times, but overall this is a sleeper defense. Current ADP trends have the Cardinals failing to make the top 15 off the board, and all that means is you have an upside defense sitting out there for nothing.
Summer of 2011: Fantasy Projections
With DRC moving onto the Eagles, I’m concerned about the Cardinals secondary and they’ve fallen out of favor in my mind as an option to consider as a backup if you normally hold two defenses. Look to the Cardinals as a defense that should get stronger as the season moves along, but they are just a matchup play defense this year.
| Sacks | Int’s | Fumbles | Avg PA | |
| 2011 Projected Stats | 30 | 21 | 15 | 25.2 |
June 2011
If rookie corner back Patrick Peterson can live up to the hype the Cardinals will have quite a tandem at corner as he teams up with Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie on the other side. Now the Cardkinas defense needs help from their offense to eat up time on the clock and keep them in the lead, for more opportunities for sacks and turnovers.
