It seems the Arizona Cardinals really are interested in reuniting their head coach with one of his former players.
There are a few high-profile free agents in this year's market who spent time with Jonathan Gannon as their defensive coordinator when he was with the Philadelphia Eagles.
As a result, the Cardinals have been identified as a landing spot for all of them throughout the offseason with those players potentially filling major needs for Arizona.
Now it seems they are actually ready to pursue one of those players.
According to PHNX Cardinals' Johnny Venerable, the Cardinals are "very much in on" Eagles defensive tackle Milton Williams.
The Arizona Cardinals are very much in on DT Milton Williams.
Yet so are 3-4 other teams.
Can't overstate what securing a 26-year-old in their prime would represent for the Cards. It's something that they, historically, have never done.
Time to pay up and reel in a big dog.
— Johnny Venerable (@JohnnyVenerable) March 6, 2025
Williams did himself plenty of favors during a contract year as he heads into free agency for the first time.
According to Pro Football Focus, he finished 19th among defensive tackles in total pressures with 40 this past season. He was also 17th at the position in sacks with six.
Those pressures would be of particular importance to a Cardinals team that was near the bottom of the league in pressure rate in 2024.
Williams also showed up in a big way when he had the most eye on him as he had a pair of sacks in the Eagles' Super Bowl win over the Chiefs.
He would be a major upgrade for the Cardinals' pass rush and has history with head coach Jonathan Gannon from their time together in Philly.
There's just one concern with Williams and that comes in his ability to stop the run. He had just 12 solo tackles this past season and was 90th among defensive tackles with 12 stops.
The Cardinals also had trouble stopping the run this past season, which makes Williams a bit of an odd fit for the team at defensive tackle.
Still, it seems that isn't going to deter them from going after an upgrade for their pass rush and a reunion for their head coach.
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This story was originally published March 6, 2025 at 4:51 PM.