Arizona Cardinals Are Not Handing Starting Job to Bobby Massie

Right tackle was one of the poorest positions for the Arizona Cardinals last year, so it came as no surprise that the team used their fourth-round pick to address the position by taking Ole Miss offensive tackle Bobby Massie.

When the time came for the veterans and rookies to mix in the first OTA practice this week, the message was clear that neither would be given anything on the depth chart that they didn't earn.

Jeremy Bridges lined up with the first team at right tackle ahead of Massie, but head coach Ken Whisenhunt still likes what he sees from the rookie. Doug Haller of the Arizona Republic reports that Whisenhunt is excited about Massie's movement and pass sets, and that Massie "looks the part."

Whisenhunt also said he was looking forward to watching Massie compete with Bridges. Cardinals fans should be looking forward to not seeing Bridges on the field during the regular season if Massie keeps it up.

Pro Football Focus had Bridges in the bottom 20 in their "pass-blocking efficiency" statistic (Arizona's other two tackles in 2011, Levi Brown and Brandon Keith, rated even worse than Bridges). Here's their formula:

"

(1– ((Sacks + (0.75*(Hits + Hurries))/ Pass Blocking Snaps))*100 = PBE Rating

"

Bridges allowed 19 total quarterback hits and hurries and seven sacks on only 319 snaps. Following that kind of performance, Massie won't have to do much more than "look the part" to win the job.