Cardinals Made Game-Changing Move with Free Agent Signing

The Arizona Cardinals needed beef on the defensive line, and they got it on Wednesday, inking former Browns DT Dalvin Tomlinson to a two-year, $29 million deal.

The move comes after a relatively lackluster tampering period. While the move to sign EDGE Josh Sweat was applaudable, Arizona needed much more than a single edge defender and a slew of re-signs.

But, late on Wednesday, GM Monti Ossenfort struck again. Tomlinson, simply put, was the top free agent interior DL still on the market, and gave him big money to come to the desert.

But it's not just a panic move, or a move for the sake of making one. Tomlinson brings just about every element to the D-line that the Cardinals had been previously lacking.

The veteran DT is a beefy 6-foot-3, 325 pounds, and provides a balanced combination of both pass rush and run stuffing dominance. The Cardinals, though they overperformed defensively in 2024, haven't had an interior threat who can play a variety of situational downs well in some time.

Tomlinson graded out to a 67.4 PFF figure - maybe not an elite-looking number, but still well above average. Perhaps most encouragingly, he sported very similar pass rush (64.8) and run defense (64.2) grades.

But while he only recorded four sacks in 2024, the pressure rate looks good. In 316 pass rush snaps, he managed 36 pressures - a number that would have led all Cardinals' interior DL this past season by a wide margin.

He can utilize his size to push his way to the QB and close gaps in the run game, and has just enough explosiveness to not be easily out-maneuvered. For a 325-pounder, the athleticism isn't nothing.

Granted, he is 31 years old - a bit older than most player Ossenfort has taken a chance on, but he hasn't shown many signs of aging, and will bring his veteran experience to a young defense. From 2017-2021, he played in 16 games every season.

Though he missed four games in 2022, he generally hasn't dealt with any sort of major injuries, and has been both durable and consistent. He has started every single NFL game he's played in throughout his eight-year career, and while he's not racking up the sacks, he does have 36 career TFLs and 67 career QB hits.

Don't get this move twisted, Tomlinson was the best external option once Milton Williams went off the board. Alongside Josh Sweat, he might just change the complexion of Arizona's once-meager defensive line entirely.