Arizona Cardinals OL Kelvin Beachum says team must find a way to make playoffs in 2025
Kelvin Beachum says there is no room for excuses for the Cardinals in 2025. They have the talent and now have to perform.
Entering the 2025 season, the Arizona Cardinals find themselves in a critical moment. Head coach Jonathan Gannon led a competitive and scrappy four-win team in 2023. In 2024, after being atop the NFC West last in the season, they faded and finished with an eight-win season.
This is the year they should take the next step and make the postseason.
Fans feel it is the year. Coaches feel it is the year.
Offensive lineman Kelvin Beachum, entering his 14th NFL season and sixth with the Cardinals, didn't shy away from the topic.
Appearing on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM during minicamp, he didn't shy away from what many would be afraid to say, calling it "the elephant in the room."
"We've got to get things done here this year, and that's just the nature of the NFL," he said. "This is a performance-based business. This is year three of this regime. Playoffs are long overdue in some regards, and we gotta find a way."
Beachum said it is something players need to be on board about.
"You've got to talk about it, he said. "You can't be like, 'oh, we don't have this piece. We don't have this piece. We lack in here.' No, no, it is time out for all those things.
"What is important is putting ourselves in a position to clock a ticket to be in the dance and then see what happens from there."
He believes the Cardinals have the team to be able to do that this year, and he praised what general manager Monti Ossenfort did in the offseason, calling it "a superb job."
"What about the offensive line? That box is checked. Well, what about the quarterback? Box is checked. What about the running back? Box is checked. Receivers, box is checked. DBs, box is checked. And then you spent a ton of money on the defensive line, and you drafted defensive line and you drafted corners. So like, what are we talking about?"
He said the Cardinals can't use excuses for potential needs, whether it is at linebacker or a "somebody to take the top off" at receiver.
"We've got to find a way to get it done. We've got to find a way to put ourselves in playoff contention."
Beachum understands the urgency the team must have. He is entering his 14th season. He doesn't know how many seasons he has left.
Will the Cardinals be up for the task? We will see early on how focused they are when the season begins.
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 onSpotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.
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