The rookies arrive later this week -- more on that below -- and the veterans are on the Phase Two of their offseason program. (Helmets! Coaches! No offense v defense though.) Let's mailbag, shall we? Questions have been edited for length and clarity. Don't forget to send a question for a future mailbag with at least a first name and last initial.
From Elliot Hyde:
"Hi Darren. A lot of the post-draft performance evaluations for Cardinals seems to focus on the impact individuals will have on the team. What I found interesting was a brief discussion yourself, Dani and Paul had on the impact that rebuilding the defensive line has on the wider team. I'd love to get your take on how you think this might change our defensive scheme. It felt last season that the defense was greater than the sum of their parts, in part because Nick Rallis kept opposing teams guessing. It feels now like the Cardinals have even more flexibility. It can't hurt that iron sharpens iron and our offense will benefit during practices. Maybe an extended topic for a future Cardinals Underground?"
I don't think it'll really change the scheme. The scheme is the scheme for what Rallis likes. What I think it might do is change how Rallis approaches each gameplan and/or playcalls. If they get to the point where they can hold up rushing four and getting pressure on the QB -- and make no mistake, building up the front line is all about doing the job with four -- and dropping seven, then that gives Rallis freedom to do all kinds of fun stuff on the back end with coverage. You are right about flexibility.
From Dan Graham:
"Seems to me that there are key questions about the Cardinals. First, who replaces Kyzir White? Is there anyone on the current roster who can play as well? Second, are we good enough at right guard? Do you feel confident that Isaiah Adams can play as well as Hernandez? I think these questions need to be answered before we can be a top-level team."
It is fair to ask those questions. I also don't think you're going to know the answers to those questions until training camp. Cody Simon hasn't even arrived yet, and Akeem Davis-Gaither has yet to be in a real practice. So that linebacker spot is TBD. As for Adams and Hernandez, we will see if Hernandez officially doesn't return -- he remains unsigned, and of course, is still rehabbing from an ACL too -- but they drafted Adams in the third round for a reason. He will have to earn his spot of course, but again, if you are spending draft picks that high on guys, they better be able to become a contributor.
From Michael S:
"Hi Darren. Can you give us a quick rundown of what rookies are doing between the draft and rookie minicamp? I was thinking there must be some sort of onboarding process where they get tours of the facility, learn about the history of the team, go through paperwork and such."
No. Rookies don't come in until Thursday for physicals and that onboarding you speak of, and then they have Friday-Saturday-Sunday by themselves to immerse themselves into tours/history/playbook. It's a busy four days. They aren't allowed to come in before that, and that's fine. They will have plenty of time to get adjusted.
From Buc in Bisbee:
"Some questions.
- Does the coaching staff have any new preparations for road games? Two road wins the past two seasons is woefully disappointing -- adds to my personal opinion that the coaching staff is a tad overwhelmed with in-game adversity.
- When/where can fans see personnel from the club around Arizona (fan visits, camp visits, etc.) This stems from a personal fascination with team outreach in-state, and the Cardinals excellent history of Walter Payton MOY winners and honorees.
- With the Nike Rivalries announcement, is there a true rivalry the club has? With the club's status as the eldest of NFL teams what rivalry history are the fans in general not aware of (ex. Panthers/Cardinals playoff results).
As a fan, I'm looking at a massive overhaul and loading up of talent and character on the roster in the new regime Cardinals fans may have never seen before - so I am squarely focusing on the coaching staff to grow and work with the roster this year. Also, I've extensively delved into the fan outreach and media departments of NFL teams and want other fans of the Cardinals to know that our club far outpaces others. We the fans are lucky to have this level of connection and attention from our team."
Here are some answers, after saying thank you to the kind words about my department in particular. We work hard to provide those things.
- New preparations? I mean, I don't know if they are losing games based on prep (and neither are you, if you ask about prep but then bring up in-game adversity, which to me isn't prep but adjustments on the fly.) The Cardinals had four one-score losses on the road last year (and two one-score wins), so I think that can be evaluated a couple of ways. Did they fail to meet adversity? Or did they just fall short with a still-lesser roster against teams with home-field advantage?
- As of right now, when it comes to the public, Mack Wilson is holding a charity basketball game at Tempe Corona del Sol High School on May 10, and Kyler has his charity softball game at Salt RIver Fields on May 17. When/if there are other appearances, I'll be sure to make note.
- It's hard to get away from the three other NFC West teams. Obviously fans remember things like the Panthers-Cardinals playoff games, but the players are so far removed I don't think they see it the same. You can definitely start to feel some kind of way when you are playing a team twice a season.
From Sebas Quiros:
"Hey Darren. Couple of questions: Never seen it happen but, what happens if a team runs out of clock in the draft? Also, considering our record last season, how we were top of the division by week 10 and all the upgrades that have been made to the roster plus another year in the system, do you think it would be egregious to say it's playoffs or bust this season for the Cards? Thanks for the mailbag as always Darren!"
It has indeed happened before, and basically what happens is the next team in line can make their pick and if the team that originally missed doesn't get their stuff together and get something in, then the *next* team can also run up and make a pick, and so on until that first team gets in a name. As for "playoffs or bust," you'd need to define bust. There are the greatest expectations this season of any since Monti and JG arrived. But what is "bust?" You're not blowing up the roster. And nuance matters too -- how the season plays out always impacts decisions after the season.
From John Dub:
"How do you think this new defense will compare to Bruce Arians' No Fly Zone' defense? I know it's speculation but in your professional opinion how do you think they will measure up?"
I'm not sure if by asking about the No Fly Zone you are talking secondary to secondary or the whole defense (which wasn't really the NFZ.) In either case, it's not fair to that group back in that 2013-16 era to say this one measures up yet considering this group hasn't even seen the field. I know you acknowledge it's speculation but for me, it doesn't measure up until it does. The secondary in particular before was loaded with vets by 2015 like Patrick Peterson, Jerraud Powers, Tyrann Mathieu, Tony Jefferson and Rashad Johnson (with an appearance by Antonio Cromartie), and while the current secondary has Budda Baker and Jalen Thompson, the rest of that secondary just doesn't have the track record yet. The Cardinals hope they get there.
From Jake Samson:
"I was up late thinking about how much longer we have to wait until football now that the free agency and draft are over, and wondered what all the staff are doing right now. Obviously the players get a break for the offseason, but Monti and the scouts work just as hard, if not harder from January through April. Do they get May to July off, or at least can they take their foot off the gas, or is it a thankless 24/7/365 grind?"
Oh Jake, this reminds me of all the questions I have gotten over the years from people who ask me, "Now that the season is over, what do you do?" There is almost always something going on with the NFL. Players get a break, yeah, but the voluntary program has been going on for two weeks and most of the players are involved and will be involved through mid-June's minicamp. The coaches are all grinding. The scouts will take a breath but they usually show around rookie minicamp and they will also be planning out their scouting for 2026. Football usually is off from mid-June to mid-July. The rest of the time, there is stuff.
From Robert Williams:
"Hi, Darren. Has Kyzir White found a new team yet? Thanks for the mailbag."
As of this mailbag, Kyzir White has not signed with a team. I do not expect him to return to Arizona now that his jersey No. 7 has been assigned to quarterback Jacoby Brissett.
From Bryce White:
"I saw after the draft Walter Nolen III was brought in immediately to HQ, but here we are a full calendar week after the draft and the other picks haven't arrived yet. Why? I see on other teams' socials that players are coming in, picking numbers, all that jazz. But why haven't the Cardinals rookies come out yet? Nothing is going on, that I know of. What's the delay?"
Patience, Bryce. This is the same timeline the Cardinals have every year. Teams can bring in rookies for either the first or second weekend after the draft for rookie camp. The Cardinals always take the second. So they come in this Thursday for physicals and setting up, and there will be content and video and press conferences and stories. They already have their numbers, which we noted last week.
From Joe Cardea:
"Darren, I know it's early but could you give us a version of your 50-man roster? Or 60-man, just to give us an idea who is on the bubble and who's not?"
Yes, it is early, and I'll be honest Joe -- and you can call it avoiding the subject if you want, but I feel how I feel -- I am not a fan of jumping the process, especially for guys who might be on the bubble. I'll say this, I think there might be a bigger fight for the last, say, 8-to-10 guys on the roster as opposed to knowing basically who the top 48 or 50 guys are already. There are gonna be battles on the defensive line and secondary and some good players might be the odd guy out. But how am I really going to know who makes sense, for example, of Denzel Burke v Elijah Jones v Kei' Trel Clark v. Jaylon Jones? Way too early.
From Mitch Davis:
"What were your thoughts on the selection of Will Johnson? I was absolutely giddy. It's a no-risk-it, no biscuit type of move that I'm here for. Should be mentioned that Monti has done such a good job of staffing this team that we are able to take big swings, with no major harm done if it's a miss. Also, it seems P2's relationship rehabilitation with the team is going well. Happy to see it. Any chance he's allowed to drop in as a guest coach for camp? Have you ever seen that happen before? Is there any chance we will see a similar reunion with Anquan Boldin?"
For an outsider that doesn't see details like the medicals, you'd be crazy not to see Johnson as a huge get for the Cardinals. Getting a potential big-time cornerback in the second round doesn't happen much. I'm not going to sit here and say that missing on a second-round pick would be no harm -- you need to be hitting in the second round -- but I will say in the second round even if he is solid and not great it turns out to be a fantastic pickup.
I don't expect Pat P to help coach. One, he doesn't have a football relationship with this staff per se, and also, the staff has a plan at practice. Could one of the young players reach out to him? Perhaps. I think P2's connection with the franchise will be more on the content end and my department rather than straight football. As for Anquan, I'd love to see such a reunion. I don't know if it will happen. It was important for Peterson to repair this relationship. Boldin has so many things going on in his life, stuff beyond the game of football and for the greater good of society, I'm not sure such a reunion is a priority right now.
From Joe Yousef:
"Is that it? Honestly I can't really think of any more moves. The entire D is stacked to the point we've got tough decisions to make come camp cuts (a good problem to have, but painful nonetheless). Offense, wide receiver maybe? Lots of talk around a certain Amari Cooper? Guy put up 1,200 yards in 2023."
I'm not going to rule out signing a receiver, but Cooper didn't make much of an impact in Buffalo last year after he was dealt and I'm not sure that's the kind of receiver the Cardinals need at this point. Given what he would be, is Cooper that much different/better than Zay Jones? That seems like duplication to me. I don't know what a guy like Cooper seeks money-wise. I'd think at this point the moves might be on hold until the coaches can look at the roster. Maybe another camp signing of a vet when they sort some things.
From Ken D:
"Either please answer in mailbag or can we place dates for rookie camp, and all subsequent training dates on the website? Sorry if I missed it but it helps to know dates of events leading up to pre- and regular season."
We've been all over that, both on its own on the site and in the mailbag.
From Seth M:
"On the heels of what seems to be a very good draft, my immediate thought is that there are going to be some very difficult decisions to make in getting down to 53, particularly on the defense. Cognizant that this is a good problem to have (and one we really haven't had the last couple of years), what are the key position groups you see as being at most risk of hard cuts (and which bubble guys really need to shine to stay on the team)? Thanks!"
Seth, see above for my bubble comments. But as for positions? With the amount of players the Cardinals have amassed on both the defensive line and at cornerback, those are going to make for some hard choices. Beyond that, I think it might be a little more easily discernable who the likely guys are to make the roster. A lot will hinge on special teams too; there could be heavy change with the guys who make it just because of special teams, with the departure of Zach Pascal and Dennis Gardeck.
From Ron Fields:
"Knowing running back was not a huge 'need' do you know if was Cam Skattebo was considered at all around their 3rd/4th round picks? Was he even on their board? I think we will regret not snagging him. I was hoping they would trade back with their third-round pick to get Skat and pick up another late pick, or trade up with their fourth-round pick as I figured he would be gone by 114. Oh well."
I mean, regret? I am an ASU guy, I would've loved to see Skattebo on this team, but no I don't expect regret. They re-signed James Conner and drafted Trey Benson for a reason. I hope Skattebo blossoms in New York; I think his impact would've been blunted in Arizona. And frankly, the Cardinals passing on a possible pass rushing kid like Burch to take a running back -- any running back -- would be malpractice IMO.
From Benjamin Budhu:
"Maybe I am wrong, and most likely I am wrong, but don't we normally get press interviews with more than just our top pick? I have checked the site and we have a few podcasts, video clips, interviews, with Nolen. But I can't find very much other than the draft call for the rest of the draftees. This is the first time a lot of us get to hear from our new players and get a feel for their mindset. Maybe I am missing where they were posted? Or maybe it's always only the first-round pick? Thanks for everything Urban, you deserve a medal for putting up with all of us."
I am very excited that everyone has sought out more content, but again, I promise the timeline has not changed. As I noted, they are coming -- Will Johnson, Cody Simon and Kitan Crawford speak on Thursday; Jordan Burch, Denzel Burke and Hayden Conner on Friday. The first-round pick always comes in right away.
But I do appreciate the imaginary medal.
