Sharp Football Analysis ranks Cardinals high at QB, low at RB
Aug 13, 2021, 10:21 AM
Among the growing number of analytical services that publish, grade and rank NFL teams for public consumption, Sharp Football Analysis is one that generally sticks to the objective numbers.
But new this year to their NFL season preview, they’ve enlisted their contributors to rank positional units for all 32 teams, using those numbers as a guide.
When it comes to the Arizona Cardinals, the exercise brings about some interesting tidbits.
It’s no surprise that the website’s highest ranking of a position group for Kliff Kingsbury’s crew was at quarterback. Kyler Murray’s dual-threat abilities have him well-regarded, as Sharp Football ranked him as the most efficient player in terms of non-designed quarterback scrambles.
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Maybe the biggest surprise is how the website views who’s lining up next to or behind Murray in the backfield.
Sharp Football does not see Chase Edmonds and James Conner giving the offense much more pop compared to the Kenyan Drake/Edmonds duo of a year ago, and it ranked Arizona’s running back group 28th in the league.
In 2020, Arizona’s scheme allowed its backfield to run into a box of six or fewer men 48% of the time, the highest rate in the league. So the lack of backfield talent is likely by design, knowing their scheme will allow for enhanced production.
Sharp Football is skeptical about the defensive backfield, where Budda Baker and Jalen Thompson at safety are joined by a nearly new set of cornerbacks aside from returning slot man Byron Murphy. The defensive backs rank 21st.
An offensive line led by D.J. Humphries and Kelvin Beachum at the tackle spots comes in 13th, and the revamped receiver group around DeAndre Hopkins is 16th.
The front seven ranked 12th and, according to Sharp Football staffers, is probably the most compelling considering its ceiling and floor.
The front seven earned votes ranging from ninth to 19th, reflecting a realistic range of potential outcomes. The additions of J.J. Watt and rookie Zaven Collins, plus the potential development of 2019 first-round pick Isaiah Simmons, give them an elite ceiling but it remains a mostly unproven unit.
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