Free Agent LB Named 'Perfect' Match for Cardinals
ARIZONA -- The Arizona Cardinals have needs across the board.
Positions such as wide receiver, cornerback and both sides of the line of scrimmage are the immediate needs that come to mind, though an established running mate opposite of Kyzir White at inside linebacker could work wonders for a Jonathan Gannon/Nick Rallis-led defense.
Pro Football Focus has just the name for Arizona to target in free agency, as Baltimore Ravens LB Patrick Queen is hitting the open market and was dubbed the "perfect" match for Arizona:
"The Cardinals have just under $57 million in cap space to work with and are in immediate need of foundational front-seven players. They owned the league’s lowest-graded run-defense unit and linebacker room in 2023," wrote Dalton Wasserman.
"Baltimore’s Patrick Queen will be just 25 years old at the start of next season and has gotten substantially better over the past two seasons, setting career-high marks in run-defense and coverage grades in 2023. Given the relatively weak group of linebackers in the 2024 draft class, Queen is a logical option for Arizona."
Queen has an estimated market value of $18.5 million per season on Spotrac while PFF has Queen at a four-year deal with $18.13 million averaged per year, including $50.25 million guaranteed and $72.5 million total.
More from Pro Football Focus' evaluation of Queen:
"Queen's pass-rushing prowess is not captured below (much like Carolina Panthers linebacker Frankie Luvu highlighted above), but it carries significant value in addition to his strong play against the run and in coverage over the past two seasons. His 48 quarterback pressures and eight sacks over the past two seasons are both second among off ball linebackers. With Baltimore's addition of linebacker Roquan Smith (the highest paid player at the position after last year's extension) and the team having several other pending free agents, Queen should get to test the market and potentially do quite well for himself."
