Why the Cardinals have bricks in lockers
Every Cardinals player has a brick in his locker – name painted on one side, “T.A.C.” on the other.
“Trust. Accountability. Commitment,” rookie running back Chase Edmonds said. “It’s really the foundation of this team.”
It was on display Saturday at the annual “Red & White Practice,” a dress rehearsal for game day, where thousands of fans turned out to see how the team looks
every day since, before and during practice, including Saturday afternoon during the team’s annual “Red & White” scrimmage at University of Phoenix Stadium.
It’s been the daily highlight of camp thus far. Watching Humphries try to fend off Jones has been like watching a cobra aginst a mongoose. It’s never boring because you never know what’s going to happen. That was Wilks’ plan all along, though, when he met privately with the two players before camp even began.
“I told them, ‘You guys have got to make each other better, challenge one another and continue to push each other,” Wilks said. “D.J., he understands that. We’re counting on him a lot because that position, as you know, is important. You’re protecting the blind side of the quarterback. And obviously with Chandler, I’m expecting some great things out of him as well.
“With D.J. being a left tackle and Chandler being one of the league’s premier (pass) rushers, that’s a great matchup each and every day in practice.”
The competition helps both players. Humphries, 24, is out to prove he can be an anchor on the Cardinals’ rebuilt line after missing 11 games because of a knee injury last season in what was to be his first year as the full-time starter. Jones, 28, is hoping to further refine his skills after leading the NFL with a franchiserecord 17 sacks and 28 tackles for loss in 2017.
They’ve each been giving the other their best and through all the hits, collisions and trash talking, they’ve actually become close friends who have discovered great mutual respect for each other.
“I told D.J. yesterday, ‘You’ll never go against someone in a game like me,’ and I said that proudly because there’s not a lot of guys that do the moves that I do,” Jones said. “I told D.J., ‘If you can get these down and you can stop me on a consistent basis, you’ll be fine.’”
And yes, Jones said, Humphries is making strides there. He said Humphries is also winning his fair share of the ongoing day-to-day battles.
“Oh for sure. D.J. is a very athletic tackle,” Jones said. “We’ve got him here for a reason. He’s very strong. He’s definitely been challenging me. It’s been a battle, for sure. We’ve been going at it.”
Jones’ unpredictability off the edge has forced Humphries to focus on his core fundamentals. Without the proper weight transfer, footwork and hand placement, he wouldn’t stand a chance against Jones, whose 401⁄2 sacks since the start of the 2015 season are the most in the league over that span.
“Me being able to go up against Chandler every day, I mean, when the season starts I feel like it’s going to be an easy transition. He’s making me so ready,” Humphries said.
Humphries said Jones doesn’t get the national respect and attention he deserves, although the Cardinals’ pass rusher was selected to the Pro Bowl and was named first-team All-Pro last season. Humphries said that’s not enough.
“He’s the top guy,” Humphries said. “I don’t appreciate the disrespect he gets. But I know everybody in the league knows it and everybody who plays tackle that goes against him knows he’s that type of guy. I certainly know it from going against him every day. He’s the best.”
Humphries wants to be the best, too. And when you’re the best, you get paid like it. Humphries, the 24th overall pick in the 2015 draft out of Florida, has one more year left on his contract after this season – the fifth-year option of his rookie deal. That means there’s a chance for negotiations to start regarding a new deal or a possible extension.
He’d love to hit the jackpot like Jones did a year ago when the Cardinals signed him to the richest deal in franchise history – a five-year contract worth $82.5 million with $53 million guaranteed. Tennessee Titans offensive tackle Taylor Lewan recently signed the richest contract ever for an NFL offensive lineman – a five-year deal worth $80 million, $50 million of which is guaranteed.
“I think I’m crafting every day,” Humphries said. “When you get to go against a guy like Chandler every day like I do, you get to build your tools, and once you have a tool box and you have a certain way you want stuff done, it’s going to be pretty easy for you to transition week to week to different players.”
Does Humphries feel as though he’s making Jones get better?
“Yeah, I feel like I am,” he said. “I feel like the fact we’re coming out and we’re competing every day and we’re both bringing high energy every day, I think that’s going to make both of us better. It’s going to help as far as conditioning terms and us being able to play at a high level all the time.”