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That UDFA receiver …

The fact Bruce Arians mentioned undrafted rookie receiver Jaron Brown the other day (and Charles Hawkins, for that matter) may in the end mean nothing. Impressing in June is not the same thing as impressing in August, when, as Arians has brought up time and time again, the lights go on and players can change. But it was tough not to notice that Brown got a lot of work in multi-receiver sets, especially late in the offseason work when Michael Floyd was protecting a testy hamstring. With Ryan Swope absent with his head issues, the door is open for some unknown receivers to make a push for a roster spot.

(The fact Arians bluntly said LaRon Byrd wasn’t exactly lighting it up also creates some possibilities at the back end of the wideout depth chart.)

The Cardinals have had a recent history of finding some receivers from nowhere this time of year. This was the time when Steve Breaston first turned some heads in 2008, and while Breaston was a fifth-round draft pick in his second season, he was never thought of as a guy with that potential before that summer. There was Stephen Williams in 2010. And Byrd last year. This time, it was No. 13 — Brown — who seemed to be everywhere.

“There is always room to improve, come out and get better every day,” Brown said, who said he didn’t know anything about the Cards and their history of undrafted receivers. “I know I’m undrafted and a rookie and I’m trying to learn as much as I can.”

Brown isn’t the only young candidate. Arians mentioned Hawkins and Robert Gill (who as an arena veteran isn’t exactly a rookie, but falls into the same kind of category) as guys who have stood out. Those guys have some speed, which is a component Arians seeks in the receiving corps. Brown, by the way, ran a 4.4 himself at his pro day, so he’s not exactly slow. The caveat that always comes with the receivers who flash in the offseason? It’s easy to flash in shorts, knowing you won’t get hit going over the middle.

“I know how good they play soccer right now,” Arians said. “Football is a noise-level game and the noise-level scares some guys. Other guys love it. That’s what we’ve got to find.”

Brown has made a good impression. So far.

Some tid, some bits on a Thursday morning

Sometimes, it takes intense evaluation to know where you are as a team. Sometimes, it’s a little more simple.

“It really comes down in this league — and watching (Sunday’s opponent) Atlanta is a good example, to making those plays (to win),” Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt said. “The Falcons make a lot of catches in tight coverage and the quarterback throws it in there. If the Green Bay game is any judge of that, we drop balls when we’re wide open. We can’t do that. We miss tackles in the open field. You can’t do that.”

Again, and this has been said too many times to count, the Cardinals as constructed don’t have margin for error. Their defense is good, but not so suffocatingly good it can hold off the opposition every time. The offense can’t turn it over and must carve out more points when it has a chance, because there won’t be too many — if any — 30-point outbursts. Special teams has to contribute to aid both sides. The Cards have to have something more to be in the game.

– My first visit to Atlanta, way back in 2004, was memorable. The Falcons won, 6-3, even though first-year defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast came up with a great gameplan to foil QB Michael Vick and Cardinals defensive end Peppi Zellner — remember him? — had probably his best game (only good game?) in Arizona. The Cards fumbled the ball late (wide receiver Karl Williams) in the red zone right before a chance to at least tie the game. Atlanta’s kicker booted two field goals for the win. That kicker just happened to be Jay Feely (h/t Mark Dalton for that memory.)

– Because I know some people still might be interested, word out of Philadelphia is that the future of cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie is uncertain with his contract set to expire.

– Another former Card, Chiefs wide receiver Steve Breaston, was a surprise healthy scratch on Monday night.

– The bye week is tough. With no games, you start to run out of things to talk about over two weeks (although a losing streak doesn’t help.)

Breaking out

This time of year, everyone is always asking me, among other things, what player do I think is going to break out during whatever season is approaching.

(And when I say everyone, it’s mostly when I am doing radio interviews, although some fans will ask from time to time.)

There’s always the matter of defining just who can be a breakout candidate. To me, it’s a guy who has only been in the league a short time. Usually it’s a guy who just completed his rookie season, although it could be a player who has been around a bit longer. There was a point early on when Adrian Wilson was my pick a couple of seasons in a row. Alan Branch was a popular choice. This year, it’s tough to get away from a couple of potentials: tight end Rob Housler and running back Ryan Williams. Williams, of course, has to prove himself healthy. Housler has to battle a lot of guys at tight end to make sure he gets playing time.

But others are intriguing. Sure, Patrick Peterson is a Pro Bowl punt returner, but he still has to prove a lot at cornerback — and having him take a big step forward there is certainly possible this year. The Cards wouldn’t mind if either Dan Williams or David Carter really established themselves at nose tackle.

It’s not always simple, though, not like Steve Breaston going from eight catches in 2007 to a 1,000-yard receiver in 2008. Still, this is the time of year when you mull such possibilities.

P.S. I will be doing a pre-camp live chat tomorrow — Tuesday — at 11 a.m. Arizona time (that’s 2 p.m. in the East) right here. We can talk breakout guys or whatever you might want. We’re only a week away.

The growth of Andre Roberts

This time last year, then-rookie wide receiver Andre Roberts, a third-round pick, was struggling. Mightily.

The coaches preached patience. And by the latter part of the season, Roberts looked like he finally “got it.” All the feeling he would end up a bust looked, in hindsight, ridiculous, and he became a prime example of evaluating prematurely.

“I don’t know if I’m the poster child for it or anything like that, but I do feel like I came back,” Roberts said. “Now I just have to work hard to get that position (of No. 2), and I do that by working hard every day.”

Ah, the No. 2 receiver spot. It was Steve Breaston’s most of last season, but by the end of the year, the coaches were using him in Breaston’s spot, testing him out and liking what they saw. They certainly like what they are seeing thus far in Flagstaff. Roberts looks nothing like the guy who dropped too many passes 12 months ago. He not only is catching the ball, but making receptions in traffic, the kind that Larry Fitzgerald makes routine.

“It’s not all confidence, but that definitely helps,” Roberts said. “When you know what you are doing you can go full speed. I had a whole bunch of things going through my mind (last year) but I got my playbook and the light came on for me in the latter part of the year.”

Roberts even sounds more confident. A nice guy, he’s to the point where he doesn’t look like he’s all that excited to continually revisit his rookie camp troubles. He’s past it, and so too are the men coaching him.

Roberts’ emergence is the piece too often missing when anyone is discussing the Cardinals’ depth chart at the position and the chase for free agents. (New tight end Todd Heap, who will make his share of catches, seems forgotten in that mold too). Coach Ken Whisenhunt has said many times the Cards will continue to monitor who is out there when it comes to the entire free-agent market, and they aren’t going to close the door on anything. But the Cards were serious when they said Fitzgerald’s extension was now their top contractual priority. That wasn’t just because Fitz is an important deal, but also because they are comfortable with their wide receiving corps.

That’s in large part because of Roberts, who has proven to coaches he is a different player than he was as a rookie.

(P.S. For those asking, all the details for the Red-White practice can be found right here.)

Breaston moves on

Wide receiver Steve Breaston hasn’t agreed to a contract anywhere else yet, but a non-Cardinal source confirms Breaston won’t be coming back to the Cardinals. It’s not a shock, given the way the season closed out for Breaston and how the team was looking closely at Andre Roberts. Roberts will be the leading candidate to replace Breaston and be Larry Fitzgerald’s No. 2.

(UPDATE: Breaston agreed to a contract with Kansas City Wednesday afternoon.)

I have no doubt Breaston would have stayed, but it became clear that his worth elsewhere on a new contract was going to exceed what the Cardinals would be thinking. Heading into his fifth NFL season, this could be Breaston’s biggest deal, and he needed to take advantage of what was/will be presented to him. For the Cardinals, I could see them looking at a mid-range veteran in free agency, although the hope is still that Roberts and Early Doucet fulfill their promise.

As for Breaston, he went from a fifth-round return man who then-OC Todd Haley never thought had a prayer to become a viable NFL receiver (the irony that Haley and the Chiefs are rumored to be in the thick of the Breaston/free-agent race) to a 1,000-yard receiver in 2008 on the last offensive play of the regular season against the Seahawks. He scored a key punt return touchdown against his hometown Steelers in 2007, made that amazing forced fumble in St. Louis last year, and was a member of the always-interesting “Backpack Boys” in the locker room. Oh, and he was one of the patient team spokesmen last season after every loss, even as the frustration mounted.

Personally, he’s a guy I would have liked to stick around (and until he signs another deal elsewhere, I guess the hope remains). But if this offseason hasn’t driven home the point enough, business is business, and that includes the NFL.

Breaston: “If I’m meant to be here, I’ll be here.”

Wide receiver Steve Breaston, a free-agent-to-be, was matter-of-fact when it came to his future while doing an interview with XTRA 910′s Bickley and MJ this afternoon, saying of his chances to remain a Cardinal, “If I’m meant to be here, I’ll be here.”

“I enjoy playing in Arizona, I enjoy it a lot. I enjoy my teammates and I like living out there,” Breaston said from his hometown near Pittsburgh. “I want to be there. … There were a lot of issues about my knee but I know I will be ready for the season.”

Breaston said the knee that hampered him all season is fine now, but he also didn’t want to talk about it much, saying it meant nothing for him to say he was OK — only that he needed to prove it on the field. Of course, he’ll have to sign somewhere before he can really show that. He’s been working out with teammates like Adrian Wilson and said he is stronger in his legs, and admitted last year was inconsistent, in part because of the knee. He didn’t have any further surgery, but the rest made a big difference.

Breaston is one of the many potential free agents who will soon flood the market once the labor situation is settled. His chances of returning to the Cards may be based on his market value, and what other teams may offer.

“I’ve been patient,” Breaston said. “Hopefully if I am blessed, that day will come where I get what I deserve. … I want to be involved with this organization. It’s wait and see.”

Soon, the fast and furious

So, whenever this is over — and again, it seems closer to that than it has been, right? — to say the NFL and those of us in it will be on a fast track is possibly a monumental understatement. There are stories about potential timelines, etc., etc., but what actually happens, both with a timeline and the actual rules in place, is very much still up in the air. Regardless, as we get to the middle of July, there are hundreds of contracts to work out, for both existing players with expiring deals and undrafted rookies and the drafted rookies (That first month or so is gonna be a grind-and-a-half for Rod Graves and Justin Casey).

The Cards, like every team, have prepped for free agency long ago. They have worked out potential FA targets regarding whatever the FA rules will be. They also know which players they want to push to bring back too (no, I do not have access to that list). It’s going to be even more work than normal too, since many reports say the teams will have 90 on the roster instead of 80 for camp, a little more leeway for injuries and such in this uncertain season. You have to figure resolving the QB situation will be at the top of the to-do list, but then which way does it go? Are the Cards able to keep guys like Sendlein, Breaston and Lutui? How many undrafted free agents are going to be targeted? More important, which veteran free agents will the team chase? And where does Larry Fitzgerald’s extension fit in?

Certainly, there will be daily news flowing quickly, so there will be plenty of which to write. Now it’s about waiting to see exactly what the headlines will be, and how fast they get pushed aside for the newest development.

Revisionist History: Fitz’s magical month

The latest in a series of offseason posts looking back:

The accomplishments certainly weren’t lost as the Cardinals went on their most exciting month-long journey ever back in the first few weeks of 2009, but I’m not totally sure what Larry Fitzgerald was doing in the playoffs that year could have been completely appreciated given the circumstances.

As the wins came and the Super Bowl got closer, talking just about one player didn’t make sense (let’s not get it twisted – Fitz still got plenty of attention over those five weeks of the postseason, and I just thumbed through his clip file if I hadn’t remembered).  When you go back and think, however, it almost started innocently against the Falcons.

At that point, the Cards just wanted to win a playoff game, after the 2-5 slide on which they entered the postseason. Fitz had 101 yards on six receptions that day, including an acrobatic catch in double-coverage for a 42-yard touchdown. But that was early, and the moments burned more harsh in the brain were things like Anquan Boldin’s 71-yard catch-and-run TD on which he came up hurt, the Dockett/Rolle combo that created a fumble for a touchdown, and tight end Stephen Spach’s game-clinching catch.

Fitz had nice numbers, but that was supposed to happen.

The next game, though, that’s when the momentum began to build. And when Fitz truly exploded.

Boldin was injured. The Cards were on the road in Carolina. And yet Fitzgerald ran roughshod, finishing with 166 yards on eight catches, with 122 of those yards coming when there was still five minutes left in the first half and the Cards were in complete control. He caught another bomb in double-coverage. He did whatever he wanted against the Panthers (who shouldn’t have been surprised; he had seven receptions for 115 yards when the teams met earlier in the season in Carolina and instead they looked like they had no idea how to deal with him). When Fitz scored his TD – an amazing effort on a crossing route in which he dove for the pylon and scored – it was still the first half and yet it felt like an exclamation point had already been stamped on the game.

His numbers were incredible. The Eagles knew this. They insisted during the week they would not let Fitzgerald go off. A noble pursuit. Yet at that point, impossible to back up with actions. Fitzgerald had three touchdown catches in the first half (he finished with nine receptions for 152 yards). The Eagles slowed him down in the second half, but he had done enough damage. It had reached the expectation that Fitzgerald was certain to get 125 yards in a game, that every jump ball would be his, that he could do no wrong and would carry the team all the way to a title. I mean, Boldin was back for the Eagles, but at that moment, Fitz was alone in the receiving stratosphere, not only on his own team but the entire league. There was no question.

(Well, I guess there was some question. But what is the two weeks leading up the Super Bowl about if not hyperbole.)

In the Super Bowl, Fitz had just one catch in the first three quarters. He had finally been tamed by the famed Steel Curtain. Except he wasn’t, suddenly going off in the final 15 minutes during the Cards’ furious rally, coming up with six receptions and capping it all with that magical 64-yard catch-and-run that seemed destined to be the highlight to signify the Cards’ improbable championship. Then it wasn’t, instead a reminder of what could have been.

The loss didn’t take away from what Fitzgerald did, however. He had seven more catches for 127 yards in the game and he had played so well for so long some were even marveling about the plays he almost made. He set playoff records for catches (30), yards (546) and TDs (7). It was a performance for the ages. “A lot of those playoff catches, he had guys draped over him and he was just making plays,” fellow wideout Steve Breaston said at the time. “You did kind of wonder: When was anyone going to stop him?”

That postseason, the answer was never.

A “minicamp” plan of sorts, and other stuff

Kent Somers has some comments from safety Adrian Wilson this morning about Cards vets — notably Wilson and Larry Fitzgerald, but including guys like Levi Brown and Jeremy Bridges — trying to organize a three-day “minicamp” for the players as they wait out what is hopefully the final stretch of the labor impasse.

“We’re trying to get three days in, or three practices in, depending on what guys have to do,” Wilson told Somers. “We’re not trying to take up guys’ time but we are trying to get better as a team, get better as individual units.”

There is only so much the Cards can do, assuming Wilson and Fitz can gather the troops. There are only so many troops to gather (do potential free agents like Steve Breaston and Deuce Lutui, for example, take part?) and with the knowledge the probable starting quarterback isn’t even on the roster yet makes for an interesting dynamic. Then again, it doesn’t surprise me that Wilson, etc., don’t want to sit idly by.

– The news came down yesterday that because Qwest is being merged into CenturyLink, the Seahawks’ home field is no longer Qwest Field but CenturyLink Field. I re-tweeted this info yesterday, leading follower @ethanpoulsen to say “False Start Field was it’s name before…and always will be it’s name.”

As I noted on Twitter, however, the Cards have done a good job with that. The Cards have only been nailed for five false starts total in the last three visits to Seattle, and none last year (despite a bad, bad game offensively). Two other ones came from tight ends, both in 2008, by Stephen Spach and Leonard Pope. The other three were in 2009 — two by RT Levi Brown and one from LT Mike Gandy.

– Matt Williamson of Scouts Inc. breaks down the Cards’ receivers. He has interesting takes on both Breaston and Andre Roberts.

Revisionist History: Draft Daze

The latest in a series of offseason posts looking back:

For this installment, we check out what was being said on the day some current Cards were drafted …

– Back in 2001, Adrian Wilson was kind of an afterthought on the first day of the draft. Back then, there were two days of the draft, with rounds one through three on Saturday. The Cardinals had the second pick overall, so offensive lineman Leonard Davis was the BIG story. The Cards also took defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch – who turned out to be a pretty good player, but after two blown-out knees and a coaching change sent him packing from Arizona – and cornerback Michael Stone. I wonder how A-Dub feels when he thinks how the great Michael Stone has a better draft pedigree than him.

Wilson was a surprise pick in some ways, because the Cards needed defensive line help more. He was raw. The Cards even briefly considered using him at cornerback at the time, believe it or not. I love the jump headline – “Could be a keeper for the Cardinals.” Uh, yeah.

– There was no question that first day of the 2004 draft turned out awesome – Larry Fitzgerald, Karlos Dansby, Darnell Dockett – but that was what was thought at the time, too. While Fitz was celebrated, looking at Dockett’s quotes from the day resonate. “I’m going to be the next Anquan Boldin,” Dockett said, referencing Boldin’s outplaying of his draft status. And he was “disgusted” that teams passed on him before he went as the first pick of the third round. Turns out Darnell was right.

– The Cards traded up in 2007 to get Alan Branch, although it seems that it took until the end of 2009 and 2010 for Branch to really hit his stride. Of course, the big story of 2007 was the decision to take Levi Brown fifth overall (part one and part two here), but at the time, it didn’t seem as big of a deal as hindsight has portrayed. Of course, that draft was also highlighted by the late pick of Steve Breaston. It’s funny to see I thought Breaston’s big competition to make the team was LeRon McCoy.

– Then there was 2008, when the Cards got DRC and Calais Campbell on the first day. Apparently, one kidney and a small school wasn’t going to scare off the Cards from Rodgers-Cromartie, and his speed didn’t hurt. All things considered, that’s been a good pick – although we all understand DRC’s need for a big 2011.