GLENDALE — Two years ago, the talent level on the Arizona Cardinals defense was so low that many thought they were tanking. A year ago, it jumped to a respectable level. This year, it has generated a ceiling to get really excited about, and no look further than the defensive line for proof of that.
Arizona, in the last two seasons, has signed Calais Campbell, L.J. Collier, Justin Jones, Bilal Nichols and Dalvin Tomlinson in free agency while it has drafted Walter Nolen III and Darius Robinson. That’s not counting for names like 2023 sixth-round pick Dante Stills, who like Collier took advantage of the extra opportunity in a thin group that dealt with lots of injuries as well.
Saturday’s preseason opener against the Kansas City Chiefs was our first peek at how the pecking order of this group would work out.
All of those names appear to be locks for the 53-man roster. The question is how the Cardinals mix and match all these names to maximize effectiveness, while locating a needed standout to benefit off the veteran dependability that Campbell and Tomlinson come in with a track record for, on top of the gap-filling Collier and Stills have provided the last two years as Cardinals.
That effectiveness was on display versus Kansas City with a balanced effort.
“I thought they did a good job,” Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon said. “We’ll always have things to clean up but for the most part (they did well). … I thought that they affected the quarterback and the run game seemed pretty good to me today.”
The stage’s spotlight begins on Robinson. He’s been overshadowed by Marvin Harrison Jr. in the fascinating Year 2 grouping of the 2024 NFL Draft class that is near if not at the top of the shortlist for swinging points of this Cardinals season, and is the type of talent that brings “game-changer” potential this defense sorely needs.
The late first-round pick didn’t debut until Week 13 last year after a calf injury sidelined him for the majority of the season, and when Robinson came back, he clearly still wasn’t himself, all while at the same time going through the passing of his mother.
Robinson only logged a few snaps but had a nice pressure on the inside to shrink Patrick Mahomes’ pocket.
Nolen is in that company too as this year’s first-round pick, but both he and Nichols are currently on the PUP list, with Nolen specifically having some doubt one or both could be sidelined for Week 1.
With that comes the opportunity for someone like Jones to reestablish himself.
Jones was signed to a three-year, $31 million contract prior to the 2024 season. It was the most expensive signing by Arizona in that offseason and he comes into 2025 tied for fourth in the highest base salary on this year’s iteration ($7 million). Last year, Jones played 16 more snaps than any other defensive tackle in Week 1 and 13 more in Week 2 before suffering a season-ending injury in Week 3.
In the same way that Campbell and Tomlinson are expected to contribute this year, Jones could be a big-time addition as another seasoned pro bringing consistency around lots of explosive talent like Nolen, Robinson and edge rushers like Josh Sweat and Baron Browning.
Jones, however, did not dress on Saturday due to a knee issue that Gannon mentioned on Tuesday. His progress is worth monitoring with tight decisions for the front office to make.
For a position grouping that went through its fair share of absences over the last two years, having three guys already dealing with things that could linger is something that will test that depth.
The injuries for Nolen, Nichols and Jones allowed some guys on the edge of the roster more runway than they typically would in a preseason opener featuring the starters.
Stills, who has done enough two straight years to evade roster cuts, is likely to make it a third. He has always found a way to make plays and continued to do so in the first half on Saturday, forcing a holding penalty and later an incompletion on a rollout as well.
“Constant improvement — I told him that on the sideline,” Gannon said of Stills’ ability to stand out. “When he got here as a pup, he would have a good day and a bad day, a good day and a bad day — kind of riding the roller coaster. And he’s been steady this camp, as steady as I’ve seen him over the course of two years. That’s typically a good sign.”
P.J.Mustipher, Elijah Simmons and Anthony Goodlow were up after Stills when it came to the majority of the reps beyond the first team. Any of those three could be the beneficiary of the current injury situation, with Mustipher and Simmons both riding good momentum from training camp.
Gannon has previously spoken highly of Mustipher, a third-year pro that has yet to stick on a roster beyond camp.
“He’s smart and he’s big,” Gannon said on July 31. “Big [men] like that don’t grow on trees, you know. And he’s done a really good job. He’s actually worked on his body this offseason where he’s playing pretty well and he set himself up to have the best camp that he could have. He can play a couple different spots but he’s a big violent physical guy.
“I’ll just tell you guys — July 4 I was in at 6:00 a.m. for some reason when everyone’s gone. I see somebody out there and he’s got a weighted vest on with no shoes on, he’s carrying kettle bells, listening to music, doing weighted farmers walks. … So the building was closed and I was in doing something and I look and he’s out there. He puts a lot into his craft and he’s playing well right now. Hard work pays off typically.”