The Arizona Cardinals were one of the most complete teams during the 2015 regular season, as they finished the season with the top offense in the league in terms of yards and finished fifth in the NFL in terms of yards allowed.
Since arriving in Arizona, head coach Bruce Arians has taken the Cardinals franchise to new heights, improving their record each season, and finished the 2015 season with the highest win total in the franchise's history at 13-3. The Cardinals are considered one of the early favorites for the NFC next season and have made some big moves, including landing former New England Patriots pass rusher Chandler Jones through a trade.
The Cardinals' newly acquired defensive end recorded 44 combined tackles and 12.5 sacks while forcing four fumbles during the 2015 season, and he is expected to make an immediate impact for the Cardinals defense in 2016. "(Defensive tackle) Rodney Gunter's going to ... continue to grow," Arians said. "(Linebackers) Markus Golden, Alex Okafor, whoever's in there on the other side. We have a great rotation. I think either one of those other guys can be double-digit sack guys. It's going to make whoever's next to him better, especially (defensive tackle) Calais (Campbell), when we put them on the same side."
Campbell recorded five sacks at defensive end in the Cardinals' 3-4 base defense last season, and if Jones lines up behind him as outside linebacker, it would create havoc for opposing offensive linemen. Arians' preliminary plan is to keep their newly acquired talented pass rusher on one side of the defensive line, but defensive coordinator James Bettcher will likely keep the cards close to his chest and could look to move Jones around, as he can consistently create problems for opposing offenses.
"I've seen him play a three (gap), I've seen him play a five, I've seen him bounce outside to a seven and rush the passer," general manager Steve Keim said. "I've seen him cover in the slot. So his length, his athleticism, his ability to change direction and all those things that he has is going to give us a lot of flexibility from a scheme standpoint."
Many expect Jones to fill the right outside linebacker position left by free agent Dwight Freeney, and the move could make sense, as he played more than 80 percent of his snaps for the Patriots on the right side of the ball last season. Arizona finished tied 20th in the league with just 37 total team sacks last season, and look for them to utilize Jones a ton, as NFL teams will have to game plan thoroughly for the Cardinals' bolstered pass rush.
