Defense Can Carry Arizona Cardinals to Playoffs

It's a new age for the Arizona Cardinals' defense, sort of.

It's year three under Jonathan Gannon and Nick Rallis, and we've seen the Cardinals defense develop an attitude and play up to their competition more often than not. They've done it despite a litany of superstars not named Budda Baker, but that may finally be changing.

Arizona spared no expense to make the unit better this offseason with talent, depth, youth, and more.

A pass rush that got it done thanks to great scheming added proven pass rushers in Josh Sweat and veteran Calais Campbell. A struggling run defense got tougher with Dalvin Tomlinson and Walter Nolen. A secondary needing an alpha outside added Will Johnson. And the rest of the defensive side of the ball received a shot or two to round things out.

As a whole, this defense looks different, yet feels the same -- just better than before.

The question we've pondered all offseason is how good can the defense actually be? On paper, they look great and at worst much improved. But with playoff hopes hanging on this season, was it enough to get them over the top?

Before we explore all of that and establish some best case scenarios, I want to make it clear that I am all in on this defense and the investments they made to improve it. Gannon and Rallis - who I think will be receiving head coaching job interviews in the near future - know how to get the most out of guys.

Now, they have plus-players that can produce at a higher level. This defense not only got better, it became even more in tune with how this coaching staff wants to run things.

That being said, the moves they made were all to address key and evident weaknesses. The Cardinals had 41 team sacks last year but with no clear-cut top pass rusher, so they added guys and brought back important contributors like Baron Browning (get ready for a breakout).

Their run defense is significantly better even if they get average play from their new additions. And an already good secondary is even better.

By addressing the weaknesses with several moves, not just one, the defense should be able to hold up its end of the bargain and deliver a playoff-caliber unit. That's where we can start as far as best case scenarios go.

As we mentioned, Arizona notched 41 sacks last season and although I don't see that number drastically improving, I do see it becoming far more consistent and being run by the players rather than the scheme. Even if they match 41 sacks, we should see the pass rush play better.

The Cardinals struggled to force turnovers last season, but a guy like Johnson can generate those by himself. That improved pass rush is also key to creating havoc and turnovers. Arizona had just nine interceptions last season, and I could see improving that total quite a bit -- maybe even double it.

In team totals, the Cardinals should find their way into the top-half of most statistics, but we want to see the scoring defense make the biggest adjustment. The defense surrendered 22.3 PPG a year ago, 15th in the league.

If they can get even one point better, they shoot up to 10th; a flat 20 makes them 7th. Both feel realistic, however they are facing some high-powered offenses this year that will challenge them.

But as a whole, I am all about the Cardinals remade, retooled, reloaded defense and expect great things in 2025. If you want a bottom line best case scenario, then let it be this: The Arizona Cardinals will roll out a top 10 defense overall this season and help carry the team back to the postseason.