NFL: Projecting final records for all 32 teams
By Brad Rowland
Arizona Cardinals
The Arizona Cardinals may have been the “forgotten” team of the 2013 season. Bruce Arians and company put together a 10-6 record while playing in the gauntlet that is the NFC West, but unfortunately, that wasn’t good enough to secure a playoff spot in a world that includes the Seahawks and 49ers. In the off-season, Arizona took some hits on the defensive side of the ball, losing Karlos Dansby to free agency and Daryl Washington to suspension, but more importantly, the Cardinals saw their best defensive lineman, Darnell Dockett, succumb to an ACL tear in training camp.
On the plus side for Arizona, the offense is relatively loaded at the skill positions, with the duo of Larry Fitzgerald and Michael Floyd at wide receiver and a full workload for Andre Ellington after the jettisoning of Rashard Mendenhall. Still, a lot of their projection comes down to Carson Palmer under center, and while that isn’t the negative that many would believe, it certainly isn’t a positive.
The defense was elite last season, ranking 2nd in DVOA by Football Outsiders, but with the losses they’ve sustained, that unit will take a step back and it will be up to the offense to make up the difference.
The Pick: 7-9