Arizona Cardinals 2005 season preview

Updated: September 2, 2005, 11:22 AM ET

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THE BOTTOM LINE

By John Clayton, ESPN.com

If you are looking for the league's sleeper team, look no farther than the desert. Coach Dennis Green has assembled a formidable threat, but the heart of this team is on defense.

Defensively, the Cardinals finished an NFC West-best 12th last year. Clancy Pendergast is emerging as one of the league's bright young defensive coordinators. The Cardinals play with an attitude. They fly to the football, and they have plenty of defensive playmakers -- linemen Bertrand Berry, Darnell Dockett and Chike Okeafor; linebacker Karlos Dansby; and defensive backs Antrel Rolle, Adrian Wilson and Robert Griffith. Clearly, this should be a top 10 defense and should create more than the 30 turnovers forced in 2004.

The offense also is better. Quarterback Kurt Warner is a great leader and still has poise in the pocket. Green thinks he has a Travis Henry-type back in J.J. Arrington. The three-receiver set of Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin and Bryant Johnson will be hard to stop. However, there are concerns.

The team has holes in the middle of the offensive line. Center Alex Stepanovich is coming off hand surgery and might be out for the first few games. The guards aren't proven. Neither are the tight ends. Things might not be perfect, but the Cardinals will cause problems.

ESPN's TAKE

By Joe Theismann, ESPN.com

The Big Question?
Is Kurt Warner the answer? This team needs him to be its answer at quarterback or the Cardinals will flounder again this season. Coach Dennis Green has done a great job incorporating a new culture into the Cardinals' organization and it would be great to see this team turn it around.

FANTASY TAKE

By Scott Engel, ESPN.com

Sleeper: RB Marcel Shipp
Don't bank on J.J. Arrington flourishing as the Cardinals' No. 1 RB. He is prone to fumbling and isn't elusive enough for a 5-foot-9 running back. The Cardinals could turn to Shipp again if Arrington struggles, and Shipp has a lot to prove. He is tough and determined, and he already has demonstrated in the preseason that he has made good strides in his recovery from last year's leg and ankle injuries.
Bust: QB Kurt Warner
Yes, Warner has a great supporting cast, especially at wide receiver. And he still makes good, quick reads. But Warner doesn't absorb big hits well and he holds onto the ball too long at times. Warner lacks the quick release and great confidence of his prime. Don't look for him to make the most of having two outstanding young receivers, and hope that he can stay healthy.

From ESPN the MAGAZINE

The Big Number

14.6 The percentage of third downs that Cardinals foes converted in 2004 (31.6 percent, fourth lowest in NFL) was down nearly a third from 2003's 46.2 percent. Last time the D was that stingy: 1994 (27.8 percent).

STRENGTH --> WIDE RECEIVER

Their young trio -- Fitzgerald (left), Boldin and Bryant Johnson -- doesn't have elite speed. No matter. The acrobatic Fitzgerald -- so impressive (8 TDs) last season despite an ankle injury -- is primed to break out as a soph. Meanwhile, a once-again healthy Boldin will line up more often in the slot, where he's very effective and very likely to replicate his 2003 success. And Johnson (49 catches) is a classic perimeter possession guy.

WEAKNESS --> PASS PROTECTION

Keeping Warner's uni clean is the biggest challenge. For starters, the Cardinals' O-line is big but lumbering. It's a 20-mule team that can overpower foes in the running game, but can look like cows on ice when adjusting to stunts in pass protection. Warner (left) is too immobile to avoid the rush on his own, and the nifty rookie Arrington is too small and green to pick up the blitz.

PROSPECTS

This can't be. A buzz? In Arizona? Actually, yes. This spring, when Fitzgerald took in a Suns game, a fan yelled: "I'm a Cowboys fan! But I'm pulling for you guys this year!" And it's not just because of the potential star power (Warner, Boldin, Fitzgerald, Arrington) that Denny Green has to work with on offense.

No, there's also buzz in Phoenix these days over DE Berry, who might be the best free agent the team has ever signed (14½ sacks and a Pro Bowl last season). This year, they added Okeafor, who's totaled 16½ sacks over the past two seasons. Mix in a linebacker corps led by future Pro Bowler Dansby and a secondary that'll be helped greatly by rookie Rolle, and anything short of a second winning season since 1998 will be a buzz-kill.

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