The 30 biggest NFL storylines of the 2020 season

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - JANUARY 11: Lamar Jackson #8 of the Baltimore Ravens gestures during the first half against the Tennessee Titans in the AFC Divisional Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium on January 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) /

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SEATTLE, WA – DECEMBER 22: Arizona Cardinals Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury walks along the sideline during a game against the Seattle Seahawks at CenturyLink Field on December 22, 2019, in Seattle, Washington. The Cardinals won 27-13. (Photo by Stephen Brashear/Getty Images) /

22. The Arizona Cardinals Defense

We’re enamored with the prospect of Kliff Kingsbury, Kyler Murray, DeAndre Hopkins, Kenyan Drake, and Larry Fitzgerald compiling their talents to make the scoreboard look like a slot machine. But have the Cardinals done enough to improve their defense?

Last season, the Cardinals were the beholder of the league’s fifth-worst defense. Offensive firepower sells tickets, and that’s fine. But try to find NFL teams that have won championships with shoddy defenses. Your search will be both enlightening and frustrating.

Arizona has defensive coordinator Vance Joseph in place to improve that side of the ball. He now has a hybrid rookie linebacker named Isaiah Simmons to cultivate and cornerback Patrick Peterson to rely on.

Yet, at some point, the team needs to foster the defensive culture with the same emphasis that Kingsbury does for the offense. Otherwise, the team will be embroiled in shootout after shootout which does not generally translate to playoff prosperity.

21. Does the DeAndre Hopkins trade work out for Houston?

Houston Texans head coach Bill O’Brien has pulled the trigger on several curious moves. In March, he executed the strangest of them all in sending wideout DeAndre Hopkins to Arizona for tailback David Johnson, and a second-round and fourth-round pick.

Now what? Is the fleet of Brandin Cooks, Will Fuller, Kenny Stills, and Randall Cobb prolific enough to make Houston formidable in the passing attack? We know Deshaun Watson can thrive, but Hopkins’ exodus, on paper, is seismic.

In a broader sense, if the Hopkins deal proves heedless and the Texans don’t make an extended playoff run, is this the end of O’Brien in south Texas? Plenty of storylines surrounded the Hopkins-Johnson trade indeed.

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