Cardinals rookies prepare for camp
The Cardinals haven’t signed any of their six rookie draft picks, including first-round selection Isaiah Simmons, but those players and other first-year pros were scheduled to begin reporting to training camp on Tuesday.
The first few days figure to be more of a process than any actual practicing.
Not only will the draft picks have to agree to terms and sign their respective rookie deals, but they and the club’s 20 undrafted rookie free agents also must pass at least two COVID-19 tests within a 24-hour span before they are even allowed to enter the Cardinals’ Tempe practice facility or State Farm Stadium.
It isn’t clear how many of the undrafted rookies will be full participants once training camp gets into full swing. Teams are allowed a roster limit of 90 players, but because of social-distancing factors and other pandemic-related restrictions, the league has considered instructing teams to only bring 75-80 players to camp.
Presently, no more than 20 players will be allowed at one time in the team’s facility. That will remain in effect until the Players Association fully signs off on the Infectious Disease Emergency Response plans for each club.
One of the players’ chief concerns has been wondering how often they
would get tested for COVID-19. On Monday, the NFL and the Players Association agreed that players and team personnel will be tested daily for at least the first two weeks of camp.
If positive test results dip below 5%, testing then will be conducted every other day. If positive tests were to rise after the two-week plan, daily testing would resume.
“This is ongoing work,” Dr. Allen Sills, the NFL’s chief medical officer, told ESPN.com.
“There’s no finish line with health and safety, and I think these protocols are living, breathing documents, which means they will change as we get new information. They will undoubtedly be changing over time, which is what we usually see in medicine.”
In addition to the start of rookies reporting, Cardinals quarterbacks and injured players were previously scheduled to report to camp on Thursday with all other veterans set to report July 28.
Multiple NFL players across the league have expressed concerns about reporting at all, however, due to lingering health and safety questions concerning the COVID-19 pandemic.
The testing procedure is now clear and the league on Monday also agreed to the players’ request that there be no preseason games this year. Questions remain, though, regarding player optout clauses and other financial-related issues.
As for the contracts involving the Cardinals’ six draft picks, the signings are expected to go smoothly because of the league’s structured rookie salary system. Simmons, the former Clemson inside linebacker selected No. 8 overall, is projected to sign a four-year, $20.6 million guaranteed contract with a $12.5 million signing bonus, according to the sports salary website Spotrac.
Tight end T.J. Hockenson, selected eighth overall last season by the Lions, signed a four-year, $19.8 million fully guaranteed contract and received a $12.4 million signing bonus.
Simmons’ salary-cap hit is projected to be $3.7 million, which would be the 15th-highest on the team. He is expected to compete for playing time right away in defensive coordinator Vance Joseph’s 3-4 base scheme, although Simmons could be moved around as both a pass rusher and an extra defender in the secondary.
“When you watch him on tape and you see him play the deep middle, the deep half, you see him play in the box, you see him blitz, rush the passer, he’s sort of a Swiss Army knife,” Cardinals General Manager Steve Keim said after drafting Simmons. “He does it all and we call that kind of a player an ‘eraser’ in this league.”
Although the early projections were that Simmons would challenge freeagent veteran addition De’Vondre Campbell for a shot at the starting weak-side inside linebacker spot next to Jordan Hicks, who finished third in the league with 149 tackles last season, the lack of on-field offseason workouts could impact the rookie’s role.
Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury, for example, noted that every NFL teams likely will have to temper its expectations for its rookie players in 2020.
“We all do,” Kingsbury said during a video conference call with reporters in May. “I believe as a coaching staff, when you look at the opportunities they’re going to get, it’s not going to be what it would have been rep-wise. Because guess what, our vets haven’t played football in a year as well. Whenever we get our hands on them, it’s gonna be a longer time than we had anticipated.
“They’re going to need the work as well, so I think we have to understand things will be moving really quickly for these guys when we get to work with them. And we probably do need to anticipate guys maybe not being as prepared as they have in the past.”
All six of the Cardinals’ draft picks are expected to make the 90-man roster nonetheless – and some of them, like Simmons, have a chance to carve out an essential role.
Former Houston offensive tackle Josh Jones, Arizona’s third-round pick, will be groomed as the club’s starting right tackle of the future.
More than likely, the job in 2020 will belong to either veteran Marcus Gilbert or Justin Murray, who started 12 games at right tackle last season.
The team also signed veteran tackle Kelvin Beachum to a one-year deal last week.
Joseph has said he can see fourthround picks Leki Fotu (Utah) and Rashard Lawrence (LSU) each vying for spots in the club’s defensive line rotation. Sixth-round pick Evan Weaver, a linebacker out of Cal who led the nation with 182 tackles last year, should be able to find a home right away on special teams at the very least.
Then there’s Eno Benjamin, the former Arizona State running back who was drafted in the seventh round.
Benjamin presently projects as the Cardinals’ third tailback on the depth chart, but his speed, elusiveness and abilities on special teams could make him a secret weapon or sorts.
The projected salary-cap numbers for the Cardinals’ draft class beyond Simmons: Jones ($879,880), Fotu ($803,368), Lawrence ($781,021), Weaver ($651,808), Benjamin ($635,679).
Have an opinion on the Arizona Cardinals? Reach McManaman at bob.mcmanaman@arizonarepublic.com and follow him on Twitter @azbobbymac. Listen to him live on Fox Sports 910-AM every Tuesday afternoon at 3:30 on Calling All Sports with Roc and Manuch and every Wednesday night from 7-9 on The Freaks with Kenny and Crash.
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