Cardinals' Silence at Trade Deadline Was Correct Call
The NFL trade deadline has officially come and gone, and the Arizona Cardinals were nowhere to be found.
On the sidelines they stood as teams such as the Chicago Bears, Miami Dolphins and Minnesota Vikings made major moves to upgrade their team with guys in the likes of T.J. Hockenson, Bradley Chubb and Chase Claypool packing their bags for a new destination.
The Cardinals are 3-5 and have underperformed through the first eight games of the season. Fans are upset - and rightfully so - that Arizona has fell very short of the mark thus far.
As Arizona Sports' John Gambadoro reports, there was absolutely zero trade traction from the Cardinals.
After head coach Kliff Kingsbury told reporters he wouldn't be shocked at any movement near the trade deadline, it appeared general manager Steve Keim shut that down.
“I think that’s just like a coach manifesting and trying to maybe let the powers speak to me to go do something for him,” Keim told 98.7's Burns & Gambo (h/t Kevin Zimmerman).
“I’m joking … I think it’s just Kliff knows whether it’s (owner Michael Bidwill) or myself, we have the mindset (that) any chance to improve the team, we’re willing to take a shot."
Upsetting? Sure, as Arizona surely must do something in order to right the ship. Previous deals that snatched Trayvon Mullen and Robbie Anderson have yet to showcase any true dividends.
However, the Cardinals ultimately made the right move by letting their silence speak volumes.
Why Arizona's Silence at the Trade Deadline Was Correct Call
The Cardinals have plenty of problems, let's not shy away from that. However, most of those problems are on the inside.
Arizona is 3-5 for plenty of reasons: Injuries, inept coaching/play-calling and lack of execution being some of the biggest ones. The talent is here, at nearly every position group, and perhaps that's why so many fans are frustrated with the output thus far.
The Cardinals started out last season 7-0 with a very similar roster, albeit Chandler Jones and DeAndre Hopkins were actually playing (well) through that stretch. You, me and everyone between has seen with our own two eyes exactly what kind of football could be played at State Farm Stadium.
Yet the problems this season aren't quite due to a golden piece to the puzzle that could be Arizona's true elixir to solve everything. Had blatant coaching troubles not existed along with the lack of a healthy roster from top to bottom, then perhaps it would be more viable to wheel-and-deal as the clock was ticking.
But those aforementioned points could be taken as weak, and that's understandable. So let's dive into some of the trade compensation awarded near the deadline for some notable names:
Roquan Smith
Ravens receive: Roquan Smith
Bears receive: Second and fifth-round pick
T.J. Hockenson
Vikings receive: T.J. Hockenson, fourth-round pick on top of another conditional fourth-round selection
Lions receive: second and third-round pick
Chase Claypool
Bears receive: Chase Claypool
Steelers receive: second-round pick
Bradley Chubb
Dolphins receive: Bradley Chubb, fifth-round pick
Broncos receive: first and fourth-round pick, Chase Edmonds
The Cardinals, already out a sixth-round pick (2024) and a seventh-round pick (2025) in the Anderson deal and a conditional 2023 seventh-round pick that could turn into a sixth-round selection, clearly were not batting in the same ballpark as other teams.
Chubb, a trade target many Cardinals fans wanted, simply carried too heavy of a price tag with him. The Cardinals indeed need more production off the edge, but the team seems happy with the progression of guys such as Cameron Thomas.
Daron Payne was another rumored Cardinals target to help bolster the defense, although the ammo needed to grab him wasn't much more of a bargain.
Adding legitimate talent to positions such as CB, DL, OLB and OL would have been widely accepted, but the hope is the cost of doing business to address one of those groups will be outdone by using whatever draft picks needed to collectively make the roster better.
Though, we are talking about the same general manager who used his first actual pick on a tight end before drafting two edge rushers in the following round in last year's draft.
There's no right or wrong way to go about Arizona's predicament. You either sit still and let fans boo from afar for sitting on your hands, or you go and make a move for a player that would have cost a pretty penny.
Was there a player out on the market that truly could have helped right the ship? Unlikely.
The Cardinals seem to be well aware that plenty of their problems reside in house, and perhaps should focus on watering their own grass before looking for other options. It's not like Keim is notorious for this, either. Let's remember trades that brought Zach Ertz and DeAndre Hopkins to Arizona too.
Every NFL team should constantly be looking to upgrade their roster, but at a certain point, the cost of doing business may cross areas teams shouldn't enter.
I'm not in those meetings, nor involved with those negotiations. Yet from the outside, it appears the Cardinals made the right call.
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