Arizona Cardinals 53-man roster projections after 1 week of training camp
The Arizona Cardinals began training camp this week and the battle for the 53-man roster has commenced. There have been highlights and injuries. Cornerback Star Thomas is out for the season with an ACL tear. Rookie defensive lineman Walter Nolen has a calf injury that could keep him out of all of camp. Veteran defensive lineman Bilal Nichols still hasn't recovered from the neck injury he suffered in Week 6.
With a couple of practices in the books, this is our first attempt to predict the 53-man roster, based on what we know.
Arizona Cardinals 53-man roster projection after first week of training camp
This is easy. Murray and Brissett are locks. Clayton Tune's best chance is for the practice squad. The Cardinals have not had more than two quarterbacks on the active roster since Jonathan Gannon became head coach.
This room feels set as well. While many would like to see Michael Carter push for a spot, he isn't going to beat out Benson for the primary back to Conner, he isn't going to beat out Demercado for the third-down role with special teams and isn't going to beat out Dallas for the kick return/special teams ace role.
Fehoko is an intriguing option with length and speed, but he doesn't offer much on special teams. $1 million of his salary is guaranteed. One of these guys will be inactive on game days.
Josiah Deguara is an intriguing option because of his special teams play, but he would have to be the No. 3 tight end on the roster to be worth keeping because the Cardinals never have four tight ends active in a game, and what is the point of a special teams ace that isn't active?
The numbers will be tough here. The top six are locks. Beachum is the backup swing tackle. Gaines will be the backup center and then Leverett can play all over the line. Conner is developmental. Could they keep 10? That could include second-year tackle Christian Jones, rookie tackle Josh Fryar or veteran Royce Newman.
Nolen doesn't make the roster because I predict he will start the season on PUP and will be out at least four weeks. If he is going to miss all of camp, he probably will not have enough reps to be ready for the season. His roster spot will be a future problem, when it would make more sense to cut Collier, who has $750,000 in guaranteed salary. That will have been paid out in the first seven weeks.
Also, I am also predicting that Nichols' neck injury will keep him from playing. That makes six players for six spots easy.
Xavier Thomas gets bumped from the roster. Ojulari is on PUP still recovering from his torn ACL, so that will be something to watch.
Four of these five slots feel like easy choices. Do they keep four or five? Walker gives them special teams play.
Thomas' injury makes the starting lineup easy, but the two backup spots will be between Clark, Burke (a rookie) and 2024 third-round pick Elijah Jones. Jones gets bumped.
Blount beats out rookie Kitan Crawford.
These are set.
Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire's Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
NBC Sports
22 minutes ago
- NBC Sports
Will Hernandez announces he's cleared to return from his torn ACL
Teams in need of offensive line help heading into the regular season can consider adding veteran guard Will Hernandez to their roster. Hernandez tore his ACL in the fifth week of the regular season while playing for the Cardinals last year and has been rehabbing since having surgery to repair the injury. Hernandez announced on Instagram on Monday that he has been cleared to return to action and wrote that he's 'hungry' to resume his playing career. Hernandez's contract with the Cardinals was up after the 2024 season, so he's free to sign with any team. The Giants drafted Hernandez in the second round in 2018 and he started 56 games in four years before moving on to Arizona. He started all 35 games he played for the Cardinals.
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
40 days till the Arizona Cardinals' 2025 season opener: Who has worn No. 40?
With 40 days till the Cardinals open the season against the Saints, we look at the players who have worn No. 40. We are counting down to the start of the 2025 regular season for the Arizona Cardinals, and we are less than six weeks away. They will open the season on the road against the New Orleans Saints on Sept. 7. That is 40 days away. As we count down the remaining days of the offseason, let's look at who has worn that number uniform over the years for the Cardinals. Who has worn No. 40? Cardinals players to wear No. 40 No. 40 has been retired for years. It was retired for Pat Tillman, who died in the line of duty in Afghanistan. The former Arizona State star was drafted by the Cardinals and then, after the September 11, 2001 attacks, he decided to enlist as an Army Ranger. No one will wear No. 40 for the Cardinals again. Tillman is the most remembered No. 40. The best one was Bobby Joe Conrad, who was a great early receiver in Cardinals history. He led the NFL in receptions one year and was a Pro Bowler and All-Pro once. Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire's Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.
New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
A key piece in Cardinals bullpen, Phil Maton is prepared to be traded at deadline — again
ST. LOUIS — Phil Maton has done this drill before. He is no stranger to trade deadline deals. The 32-year-old has been traded three times in July throughout his nine-year career. With the St. Louis Cardinals expecting to shop their rental relievers, the odds of a fourth trade are high. If he had a choice, Maton would remain with the Cardinals. But he also knows his role as a high-leverage reliever often comes with the most turnover. It's an unfortunate reality of the business. Advertisement 'It's hard enough to be a big leaguer. It's even harder to stay in the big leagues,' Maton said. 'Especially as a reliever. It's hard to get contracts and constantly keep coming back and having teams want to pay you money over bringing up young talent.' It's no secret relievers are volatile; it's what makes them so valuable come the deadline. Maton's value is at a high. He entered play Monday with a 2.35 ERA over 40 appearances. He's dazzled in late relief for St. Louis, registering a whiff rate and strikeout rate both over 30 percent. He's done so with one of the slowest average velocities in the game, but one of the best spin rates. 'You think about where this team is without Phil,' manager Oli Marmol said over the weekend, 'it gets ugly real quick.' The Cardinals clubhouse has lauded Maton all year, with veterans admiring his demeanor on the mound and rookies crediting him for passing along his staunch preparation techniques. There is internal hope within the clubhouse that he'll remain with the club. But as Thursday's deadline trickles near, Maton is facing reality — and is again prepared to be on the move. 'You just have to try to look at it as a positive,' he said from the home dugout at Busch Stadium on Monday. 'It's not always what you want to do, but it's always something to learn. There's always an opportunity to improve and there's always different personnel where you go. So you just try to make the most of all those opportunities.' Phil Maton's 3Ks in the 11th…and Sword. ⚔️ — Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 21, 2025 Not all trade scenarios are created equal. Maton was in Triple A when he was first traded from the San Diego Padres to the Cleveland Guardians, a move he described as 'probably saving my career.' He began establishing himself over the next three seasons and was admittedly caught off guard when Cleveland dealt him and catcher Yainer Diaz to the Houston Astros in 2021 on the day of the trade deadline. Advertisement 'The Houston trade was very surprising to me,' Maton recalled. 'We were saying goodbye to other guys on the Cleveland team. I was heading out of my hotel room to go to the field and had to turn right back around and pack my stuff.' It was in Houston where Maton emerged as a durable arm, though. He missed the Astros' entire 2022 playoff run (and World Series championship) due to a broken finger he sustained punching a wall after the final game of the regular season. He elected free agency after the 2023 season, where he logged a 3.00 ERA over 68 appearances with a 10.1 strikeout-per-nine-innings rate. Maton signed with the Tampa Bay Rays, but struggled in the first half. With the Rays selling, he figured he'd be on the move. He was right. Maton was traded to the New York Mets in early July and became a pivotal member of the bullpen during the team's second-half run to the postseason. 'The trade last year wasn't all too surprising,' he said. 'The front office and people in Tampa are awesome people, they're very transparent. 'They don't like spending money. I wasn't throwing well. There was an opportunity to offload my salary, and they took the opportunity. We saw it coming, we knew it was going to happen.' Now Maton is back in familiar territory. He should be a coveted reliever this week. The trade deadline always favors the sellers, and while the Cardinals have not definitively declared themselves as such, their 55-53 record and place in the standings (nine games back in the National League Central, three games back in the wild-card) suggest they will be. President of baseball operations John Mozeliak is prepared to wait out contending teams as he fields interest in Maton, closer Ryan Helsley and set-up men Steven Matz and JoJo Romero. All but Romero will be free agents at the end of the year; he has one remaining year of team control. Maton is arguably the most ideal acquisition of the four pitchers, at least from a cost perspective. He signed a one-year, $2 million deal with St. Louis in March and is owed roughly $700,000 for the remainder of the season. But contending teams also will be intrigued by his veteran pedigree and extensive postseason experience. His performance this year won't hurt either. Advertisement There is some irony in being so highly desired after Maton spent the majority of the offseason unsigned, and that does play into why he would like to stay with the Cardinals. 'After dealing with all the teams in the offseason and their disinterest, I would prefer to stay here,' Maton said. 'This is where we signed our contract for, and where we committed our summer to. But we weren't really negotiating from any place of leverage this offseason, from a no-trade clause standpoint or anything, so whatever they do, it is what it is. But I've enjoyed my time here.' Maton, however, has been in this game long enough and understands how the business operates. His wife, Katelynn, has started packing their apartment in St. Louis — just in case. The Cardinals, who hold the leverage here, are in no rush to part with any of their players. Maton knows the next few days could be grueling as traction starts to pick up, but similar to how he pitches, he'll do his best to block out the noise. 'Regardless of what happens, we'll be ready to stay here or go,' he said. 'I'm just trying to keep my mind off it as much as possible.' (Top photo of Phil Maton pitching: Patrick Smith / Getty Images)
