The Arizona Cardinals came to Phoenix in 1988, and while the city has hosted many major football games, including Super Bowls and NCAA National Championship games, its football team has been a pathetic joke. While they briefly teased fans with Jake the Snake Plummer and a playoff appearance, the Cardinals haven’t lived up to the success of the Phoenix Suns or Arizona Diamondbacks.
Now, there is a strong tone of optimism as the Cardinals have what some consider to be the best receiving corps in football in Bolden, Fitzgerald and Johnson, a veteran Super Bowl quarterback in Kurt Warner, a talented young defense and a great kicking game. They added future hall of fame running back Edgerrin James via the free agency route and have now landed former USC star quarterback Matt Leinart. Pundits suggest it’s only a matter of time before Leinart throws passes and hands over star players like he did as a Trojan.
They also drafted a huge and talented tight end in Georgia’s Leonard Pope and USC guard Taitusi Lutui, so could the Cardinals be the Pittsburgh Steelers’ next quick trade?
The Dallas Cowboys followed a familiar pattern when it comes to Bill Parcells teams by building a winner through defense. After drafting defenders with six of their eight picks in 2005, the Cowboys went back to a defensive mindset in 2006 with four of their first six picks going on defense: Ohio State linebacker Bobby Carpenter, Grambling State winger Jason Hatcher, Florida State safety Pat Watkins. and Louisville board Montavious Stanley.
Considering what the Cowboys got last year in the draft on defense (three starters in linebacker DeMarcus Ware and ends Marcus Spears and Chris Canty), Jones believes the Cowboys are headed down that path after what they accomplished in the last two days.
Carpenter was clearly the jewel of the 2006 draft class who can best be described as solid rather than spectacular.
Picked 18th overall, the versatile Carpenter is expected to complement Ware and form an imposing tandem of outside linebackers for the future. While Hatcher, the third-round pick, is a relative unknown, he’s believed to have a tremendous upside.
Some scouts believe he may be more dominant in the NFL than he was in college. Jones said he compares favorably to defensive tackle Leon Lett, who became a force for the Cowboys after being selected in the seventh round out of Emporia (Kan.) State in 1991.
The Cowboys traded in the fifth round for Watkins, who is lanky and has good ball-covering skills. He could fill their need for true free safety, though he’s expected to make an immediate impact on special teams.
The 6-foot-2, 314-pound Stanley should provide depth at nose tackle behind starter Jason Ferguson, giving the Cowboys another run block that clogs up space in the middle of their 3-4 defense.
What about the Denver Broncos and coach Mike Shanahan, known as a guru when it comes to quarterback development? Take a quarterback, Jay Cutler, who many pundits believe is better than Vince Young and Matt Leinart, and shock the rest of the NFL, who didn’t see it coming. Denver has another John Elway in its barn!
Bob Acton is a sports writer for Sportsbook.com, his online sports betting site.
