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See and react to Greg Cosell’s analysis of the Cardinals from Ross Tucker’s NFC West preview
Many thanks to since61 for bringing Greg Cosell’s analysis of the 2025 Arizona Cardinals to our attention, via Ross Tucker’s NFC West preview.
Here, have a look for yourself: (the Cardinals’ segment starts at 7:44)
Highlights of Greg Cosell’s thoughts:
- He’s fascinated with the Cardinals innovative defense, where they play Garrett Williams, Budda Baker and the free safety (Jalen Thompson or Dadrion Tayler-Demerson) as a trio in the middle portions of the field, each about 10 yards off the ball, and how Nick Rallis takes Garrett Williams away from the slot and uses him as a zone coverage dynamo, either in the intermediate or deep areas of the field.
- He lauds having Garrett Williams in a trio next to Budda and the FS because it allows Rallis to send Budda after the ball as often as he can in run support —- which, of course, is Budda’s forte.
- He lauds the Cardinals free agent signings of Josh Sweat, Dalvin Tomlinson and Calais Campbell.
- He believes that Walter Nolen is the most talented defensive tackle in the 2025 NFL Draft class and agrees with Ross Tucker that Calais Campbell is an ideal mentor for Walter Nolen.
- He’s still unsure of what to expect from QB Kyler Murray, given Kyler’s sensational ability to create big-time highlight-reel type plays and, on the flip side, Kyler’s up and down performances. As Ross Tucker said, “you can talk to 10 people and get 10 different opinions of Kyler Murray.”
- He said, “I watch him over and over and I can’t get a feel for what Kyler Murray is. He obviously throws the ball well. We know that as an athlete and a mover he can be utterly dynamic. I mean there are times when he’s not that much different than Lamar Jackson, the way he moves and makes plays with his legs. I just can’t understand why there is an up and down nature to his performance.
- “The inconsistencies and not knowing what they are getting from a QB week to week can drive coaches crazy. They’d almost rather have a guy with lesser talent that they exactly what they are going to get from week to week, when they do some things really well. With Kyler Murray it’s a wide spectrum on a week-to-week basis.’
- Ross Tucker added, having done the color for a couple of Cardinals’ games last season, “sometimes it’s almost like a half-to-half thing.”
- Tucker said that when he played for the Patriots, “the most important thing they wanted was consistency. As long as they know who you are they are not going to put you in a bad spot, but if they can’t get a handle on what you are, then they can’t utilize you in a way that puts you in a good position.”
- Greg Cosell lauded Kyler Murray’s sensational playmaking early in the season versus the Rams but concluded “but he’s a very hard guy for me to evaluate on a week-to-week basis.”
Commentary:
I too have been fascinated with the unorthodox and innovated ways in which Nick Rallis utilizes Garrett Williams and Budda Baker. However, while it works very well for Garrett and Budda, the problem is getting reciprocal and complimentary play from the rest of the defense, Hopefully, the ways in which the Cardinals have improved their talent on defense will make whatever alignments and schemes much stronger.
For example, while Garrett Williams led NFL cornerbacks with a stellar 90.6 zone coverage grade...
... in light of where Nick Rallis lines up Garrett Williams often 10 yards deep toward the middle of the field, one could make the argument that Garrett is more of a safety than a cornerback. This notion can be further corroborated by the fact that Rallis shunned putting Garrett man-to-man on slot WRs, perhaps largely because Garrett’s man coverage grade in 2024 was 50.7.
Cardinals’ 2024 Zone Coverage Grades:
- Garrett Williams —- 90.6
- Kei’Trel Clark —- 76.6
- Dadrion Taylor-Demerson —- 68.7
- Starling Thomas V —- 67.1
- Budda Baker —- 66.1
- Jalen Thompson —- 64.5
- Mack Wilson Sr. —- 63.8
- Krys Barnes —- 55.0
- Max Melton —- 48.8
- Sean Murphy-Bunting —- 46.7
- Kyzir White —- 29.5
These grades confirm how and why the Cardinals’ zone coverage on the whole was erratic. Opposing QB knew they could exploit the CBs on the perimeter because of the absurd amount of cushion they would give up and expose the MIKE LB who struggles all year to be covering a receiver in the right spot of the field at the right time.
Cardinals’ 2024 Man Coverage Grades:
- Krys Barnes —- 84.8
- Dadrion Taylor-Demerson —- 68.7
- Max Melton —- 66.3
- Budda Baker —- 66.1
- Jalen Thompson —- 64.5
- Sean Murphy-Bunting —- 64.3
- Kyzir White —- 63.9
- Mack Wilson Sr. —- 55.2
- Starling Thomas V —- 54.2
- Garrett Williams —- 50.7
- Kei’Trel Clark —- 48.5
Here’s the problem —- none of the Cardinals cornerbacks or linebackers graded above 63.0 in both zone and man coverage. Typically, most were efficient at one but subpar at the other,
The only players who graded 63.0 or better in both man and zone were safeties Dadrion Taylor-Demerson (who doubles as a slot cornerback in man coverage like he did at Texas Tech), Budda Baker and Jalen Thompson.
Curiously, the Cardinals this April drafted highly touted zone cornerbacks Will Johnson and Denzel Burke, neither of whom graded well in 2024 in man-to-man coverage.
Is Nick Rallis going to have designated zone players and man-to-man players? Will that be a giveaway for opposing offenses?
As for Kyler Murray, we know that he’s been working extremely hard this off-season to take his and team’s game to the next level. Greg Cosell is correct —- Kyler is a difficult player to evaluate on a week-to-week basis. This needs to change —- for Kyler and the team.
It’s frustrating to me that all Greg Cosell and Ross Tucker said about the Cardinals’ offense was about Kyler Murray. The Cardinals’ offense has an impressive identity of being a smashmouth rushing team and a tight end in Trey McBride who is emerging as one of the top receivers on planet earth.
The key fundamental that Cardinals’ teams have done consistently well the past two seasons is block and block hard, all the way through the whistle. These Cardinals also run hard through the whistle.
Greg Cosell is fascinated with Nick Rallis’ innovative 3-safety 10 yards off the ball scheme —- but the problem is, on the whole, that the team’s tackling and the pass coverage has to date been unacceptable —— and if tackling and coverage techniques and executions don't improve in tangible ways, innovative schemes won’t matter.
These were my reactions.
What are your reactions to Greg Cosell’s points?
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