5 Reasons Arizona Cardinals Are Being Massively Underrated in 2012

The Arizona Cardinals are being massively underrated in 2012, and there are five reasons why that is happening.

Every year, the assumption is that the Cardinals are going nowhere. And that’s valid, because with the exception of two Kurt Warner-led seasons at the tail end of the last decade, Arizona has indeed gone nowhere.

This year is different, however. The preview of the team remains the same, but the team itself is a sleeping giant. He who has the misfortune of waking this giant will be forever sorry.

The five reasons why the Arizona Cardinals are being underrated in 2012 lie in wait. Read on.

Quarterback Play

Kevin Kolb and John Skelton have just gone through their first true offseason of work with the team.

Kolb was thrust into the starting role after the Philadelphia Eagles shipped him to the Valley following the conclusion of the work stoppage.

This is Skelton’s third offseason with Arizona, but his first while getting any real reps with the first team.

Both are now fighting for the starting job, and both should be noticeably better in game action. For the 24-year-old Skelton, the outlook on his NFL future is still bright. For Kolb, the soon-to-be-28-year-old is looking toward this as being possibly his last chance to win a starting job in the league.

If Kolb ultimately fails this season, he could be released from his contract and realistically not find another starting job anywhere. That motivation, along with the work being put in by both quarterbacks with new QB coach John McNulty, should provide a lot of improvement at the position.

Whoever is the victor will have proven he is the right quarterback to lead the Cardinals into the season.

Health of the Running Backs

A lot of what the offense will be in 2012 hinges on the health of Beanie Wells and Ryan Williams.

If they enter the season 100 percent and ready to go, the offensive strategy can be expanded, making it more potent and dangerous.

The contrasting styles with which they run the ball have a chance to be special, but only if both stay healthy.

While Wells is a powerful runner with every intention of beating you into the ground, Williams is a nifty back with all the moves necessary to stop play in the middle of training camp while everyone wraps their head around what he just did.

Wells carried the load last year, and that took its toll on the 230-pound man. Having the ability to share snaps with Williams should keep Wells fresher down the stretch and more deadly in late-game situations.

Unproven Wide Receiving Corps

Other than the world’s greatest wide receiver, Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona’s receiving corps has been a question mark since the departure of Anquan Boldin.

The Cardinals attempted to fix that when they drafted Michael Floyd in the first round of April’s NFL draft, and though they have yet to see a return on that investment, it looks so far to be a great pickup.

Floyd allows Andre Roberts to slide into the slot and work against lesser cornerbacks. Roberts played the 2011 season as the No. 2 receiver on the outside the majority of the time, and he was not able to have the season everyone expected of him.

According to ProFootballFocus, Early Doucet had the highest catch rate of any slot receiver on the team.

It would have been better had he not dropped 12 percent of the passes intended for him, but he still was the second-leading receiver on the team despite playing far less than the No. 2, Roberts.

This group of receivers will be vastly improved in 2012 because of Floyd and the time they have to work with Kolb and Skelton. Chemistry is a major factor.

That Offensive Line

Much like the defense, left tackle Levi Brown improved as the season wore on.

He may have finally figured out this left tackle thing, and if that’s the case, then the line is better for it.

The Cardinals also added talent to the revolving door that is the right side of the line.

Free-agent acquisition Adam Snyder will start at right guard, while rookie Bobby Massie will push 10-year veteran Jeremy Bridges for the starting right tackle spot throughout camp and during the preseason.

The unit allowed 54 sacks a year ago, the second-highest total in the NFL—that will not be the case this coming campaign.

With the improved running game, the quarterbacks’ better understanding of the offense and the added help to the receiving corps, the line could develop into the strength of the offense by the time the 2012 season concludes.

But none of that will matter without the improvement of…

The Defense

By now you all should know of how this defense finished last season.

It was great—among the best.

But now it has to prove the final half of the season was not a fluke. It did face some lesser offenses during that span, but it also shut down good teams in clutch situations.

Philadelphia’s “Dream Team,” Tony Romo’s Dallas Cowboys and the NFC West champion San Francisco 49ers all experienced the wrath of the Arizona defense during the second half of 2011, and in the process they all turned in one of their worst offensive performances of the season.

The Cardinals were one of five teams to hold Eagles RB LeSean McCoy to under 100 yards from scrimmage. They also limited both the Cowboys and 49ers to their fifth-lowest offensive outputs of the season.

That is a drastic improvement from the gaudy numbers the defense surrendered the first eight games of 2011.

Under defensive coordinator Ray Horton, they have come together in a short period of time to become one of the best young defenses in the NFL. This defense is ready to crush opponents.

One area it needs to improve is in creating turnovers. Arizona had one of the worst turnover ratios in the league last year. Horton has implemented his entire scheme, and the players now understand what they’re doing, so generating more turnovers could come naturally.

Middle linebacker Daryl Washington, defensive ends Calais Campbell and Darnell Dockett, safety Adrian Wilson, outside linebackers Sam Acho and O’Brien Schofield, and cornerback Patrick Peterson will be the leaders, and they are ready.