Now that the Cardinals offseason work has concluded, the players are out of the facility. Many have stated that these next few weeks aren’t time off from football, but time away from the facility, hoping players remain locked in and prepared to report to Glendale for training camp on July 23. In the meantime, azcardinals.com will take a look and evaluate each position group prior to camp.
Next up, outside linebacker.
Dennis Gardeck ended the 2023 campaign as the Cardinals leader in sacks with six. Considering Gardeck’s journey, one that has not been linear, it’s admirable to see the position he’s put himself in. Standing at six-foot, Gardeck doesn’t look like your prototypical edge rusher, but he uses his size and bend to cause chaos in the backfield. He’s a lock to make this roster because he’s proven, both on and off the field as well as special teams, how important he is to this team.
A player that he predicted will have a breakout season is BJ Ojulari. The 2023 second-rounder didn’t have a full offseason with the club after he underwent a procedure on his knee. Once he debuted and began to practice, it took Ojulari some time to find his footing. Midway through the season, specifically in the game against the Falcons where Ojulari finished with a pair of sacks, the vision for the new-look No. 9 became clear. When asked if double-digit sacks could be a possibility this season, Ojulari said, “most definitely.”
There’s a lot of optimism surrounding Collins going into his second season as an outside linebacker. The position change took some time, but throughout OTAs and minicamp, Collins has spent valuable one-on-one time working with outside linebackers coach Rob Rodriguez and defensive coordinator Nick Rallis. An improved defensive line room will also help players like Collins, Ojulari, and Gardeck get to the quarterback.
With the nonstop rotation that Rallis likes to include in his scheme, there’s a need to have multiple outside linebackers that could get to the quarterback. Jonathan Gannon said that they’ll look to use Cameron Thomas everywhere, including on the defensive line, but he needs to be more consistent. “I want to him take that next jump,” Gannon said. This comes after the 2022 third-rounder had a solid rookie season. Going into his third training camp, it’ll be intriguing to see what his role becomes.
Victor Dimukeje, Jesse Luketa, and Tyreke Smith were rotational players that were used in multiple blitz packages. Every team needs an outside linebacker that can bull rush the quarterback, and the Cardinals have those guys in the room. While they caused pressures, the pass rush wasn’t able to translate into sacks.
Outside of Xavier Thomas in the draft, the room didn’t change from the previous year. The continuity that creates is irreplaceable, but there still might be room to add another difference maker in the unit. It’s fair to say that one was needed towards the latter half of the season. There aren’t many pass rushers available on the market that would fit into the Cardinals scheme, however, if one appears, Monti Ossenfort might look at bringing somebody in.
