Say this for the 2023 Arizona Cardinals: they were a bit of a giant killer. In head coach Jonathan Gannon's first season, his team won just four games in 17 tries. But the four wins were pretty impressive.
The biggest upset was Arizona's first one, which came in Week 3. Coming off a blown lead and loss to the New York Giants, the Cards knocked off the Dallas Cowboys in stunning fashion, a comfortable 28-16 victory. It took until Week 10 to get back into the win column with a defeat of the Atlanta Falcons in Kyler Murray's first game back from injury, however.
Wins over the Pittsburgh Steelers and Philadelphia Eagles means that of the four teams Arizona bested, three of them made the playoffs. (None advanced, but still.) With another offseason under Gannon, the Cardinals can expect improvement in 2024. But who will be a part of that project?
Of the 22 players with expiring contracts, Arizona has two stars they should bring back and a lot of decisions to make on depth pieces. Let's help them out and identify three players who should be back in the desert in 2024.
S Budda Baker (club option)
This one is a no-brainer. Baker is a drafted-and-developed star at safety for Arizona. He's made six Pro Bowls in seven NFL seasons, along with the more meaningful honor of two All-Pro first team seasons and a second team one as well. He's been voted team captain for four straight seasons as well.
Baker played a career-low 12 games in 2023 due to injury, and as a result, his counting stats were down across the board. For the first time since 2019, Baker failed to snag at least two interceptions in a season. (He had zero.)
But Baker is one of the game's best safeties and a team leader. Arizona re-worked Baker's old contract after the star requested a trade in the offseason, but that trade request only came about because Baker wanted and was denied a long-term contract with the Cardinals. If Baker wants to remain with the only NFL team he's ever known, Gannon and the Cardinals should be happy to oblige him.
WR Marquise Brown
Another “gotta get it done” contract for Arizona's offseason. The Cardinals traded away significant draft capital to acquire Brown with the idea of him filling the role of number-one receiver for Kyler Murray.
Things haven't exactly gone to plan, with Murray missing chunks of the 2022 and 2023 seasons because of a torn ACL. Brown did post an impressive 88 yards on six catches in Week 12 with Murray before the wideout went down for the season with a heel injury.
The former Oklahoma star has just 1,000-yard season in his career, but part of that is circumstances. He played his first three seasons in the Baltimore Ravens' run-first offense, then hasn't had his quarterback for much of his two years in Arizona.
But Brown has displayed his explosiveness, and he should be a major weapon for Murray moving forward. In a pass-happy league, receivers are premium players, and Brown is too good to let walk for nothing.
LB Krys Barnes
The Cardinals lost linebacker Kyzir White for the season before December arrived, leaving a huge hole on defense. In stepped Krys Barnes, and his play warranted an opportunity to return to the Cardinals.
Barnes earned enough trust with the coaching staff to wear the green-dot helmet as the signal caller on the defense. He left a big impression, recording 55 tackles and three tackles-for-loss in limited snaps. He also picked off Houston Texans phenom C.J. Stroud and returned the pick 46 yards.
Barnes isn't s superstar, but he filled in admirably when White went down, and showed he can provide nice depth in the team's linebacker room. The Cardinals should be happy to bring Barnes back in 2024.
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