Pro Football Weekly and Riddell present ...
2002 NFL draft
Cards don’t gamble on draft miscues
McGinnis & Company stick with philosophy
By Jeff Reynolds, Associate editor of special projects
April 20, 2002
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| Wow. Imagine the celebration in the Arizona Cardinals’ War Room when
OT Levi Jones went to the Bengals and DE Dwight Freeney was drafted by Indianapolis. The
domino effect was that DT Albert Haynesworth and CB Phillip Buchanon, two players that
seemed like sure things, fell in the lap of Bill Bidwill’s Cardinals. A player
Arizona thought would be around, DT John Henderson, went ninth to Jacksonville. But like
the two teams before, Arizona passed, and grabbed agile DT Wendell Bryant from Wisconsin.
I see this for the Cardinals, hands down, as the safe and solid pick of the draft. With
DE Kyle Vanden Bosch, the team’s second-round pick in 2001, DL Fred Wakefield, DL
Russell Davis and others in tow, Bryant fits a bill the Cardinals have bounced in the
past.
Remember Simeon Rice, Andre Wadsworth and Eric Swann? So do the Cardinals. That is why
the Cardinals played it safe, and went with the character pick Bryant, allowing brash
Buchanon and high-potential Haynesworth to be someone else’s worry.
The Cardinals made positive strides in the offseason, signing upper-tier free agents CB
Duane Starks and TE Freddie Jones, as well as keeping in-house OT Anthony Clement to
stabilize one of the youngest and potentially potent offensive fronts in the league.
Heading to the NFC West after being buried in the NFC East for years, the Cards needed
to upgrade in sacks (19), takeaways (24) and rush defense (allowed 120+ yards in 10 of 16
games). Also, head coach Dave McGinnis, a former LB coach and defensive coordinator, had
to take additional steps to shore up the Cardinals’ pass defense with QBs Kurt
Warner, Jeff Garcia and Trent Dilfer in the division.
Oh, yes, there are some good running backs around as well. St. Louis features a guy
named Marshall Faulk, San Francisco was second in the NFL in rushing behind the Rams with
Garrison Hearst and Kevan Barlow doing most of the damage. And Seattle features Shaun
Alexander, who rushed for 1,200 yards last season despite starting a little more than half
the season.
The Cardinals now have another piece of the defensive puzzle and are closer to solving
the West Coast offenses of these three divisional foes. Bryant is active and, while some
consider him undersized for the position, the 6-4, 300-pounder has the speed to play
outside and move along the line to put pressure on the opposing offensive line and
quarterback. That was the primary goal for the Cardinals entering the draft.
Mission accomplished. |
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