Report: Arizona Cardinals interested in outside linebacker Mike Neal

While the Arizona Cardinals’ front office currently finds itself in Indianapolis taking inventory of the best young prospects the upcoming NFL Draft has to offer, the prospect of upgrading the roster through free agency is apparently not far from their mind.

According to Bob McGinn of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the Cardinals are one of the teams rumored to be interested in outside linebacker Mike Neal.

Neal, a former second-round draft pick out of Purdue in 2010, has played his entire career with the Green Bay Packers. Last season, he set career highs in games played (16), solo tackles (36), total tackles (47), sacks (5) and interceptions (1).

The Cardinals entered the 2013 with plenty of depth at the outside linebacker position, but season-ending injuries to Sam Acho and Lorenzo Alexander forced Matt Shaughnessy and John Abraham to play a bit out of position. Arizona relied on Dontay Moch and Marcus Benard to fill the void, as well.

Neal wasn’t without his own ailments last season, either. The 26-year-old suffered a knee injury that forced him out of the Packers’ Wild Card round loss to the San Francisco 49ers.