Posts tagged EdgerrinJames at FanHouse - AOL Sports Blog

With each pick of the FanHouse mock draft, we get into the head of an NFL general manager and let you know who he'll pick and why.

Earlier in the offseason, there was some speculation in Arizona regarding the future of Edgerrin James. Although an official stance was never actually given, there was clearly some sort of misunderstanding that had James questioning his future with the club.

Although those tempers eventually cooled, the Cardinals interest in finding a second running back did not. And with four of top cornerbacks already off the board, coupled with Aqib Talib's failed drug test, the selection of Rashard Mendenhall seems like the perfect fit.

Mendenhall gives Arizona exactly what they were looking for when they drafted J.J. Arrington -- an explosive back that has the ability to break a long run every time he touches the ball. And although he's often knocked for putting the ball on the ground, he's far too great a talent to pass up at number 16.

For the time being, Mendenhall will fill an important change-of-pace role for the Cardinals. Eventually, however, the James era will come to an end and he'll get to step up and grab the reigns for Arizona.

The Skinny:
Team needs - RB, CB, OT, S, OLB
Player Selected - Rashard Mendenhall, RB, Illinois
Also Considered - Aqib Talib, CB, Kansas

Previous Pick: No. 15, Branden Albert, Detroit Lions

Next Pick: No. 17, Minnesota Vikings

The Cardinals still have plenty to sort out in terms of their salary cap, but they'll have linebacker Karlos Dansby for at least one more season. The team franchised their former second-round pick today.

The move means Dansby has been offered a one-year deal worth just over $8 million, the average salary of the five highest-paid linebackers in the NFL last season. The Cardinals can continue to negotiate a long-term deal through July 15. If Dansby signs an offer sheet from another team, Arizona can match it or receive two first-round draft picks as compensation.

Dansby successfully made the move from outside to inside linebacker last season. Arizona was in no hurry to re-sign him because of his injury history, but after a productive 2007, they weren't ready to let him leave for nothing.

The Cardinals still have to decide what to do with wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald and his ginormous contract. I suppose they could just pay him the $16.5 million he's due next season, but they'd only be able to carry 25 players on the roster.

Seriously, general manager Rod Graves admits that the team faces some very tough decisions, and forking over that kind of dough for one player is, well, insane. It's almost (but not quite) like giving Edgerrin James all that money to average three yards per carry.

The Arizona Cardinals are in a mess heading into the NFL free agency period, and they have no one to blame but themselves.

Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald is owed a base salary of $16.5 million for the 2008 season, thanks to the incentive-laden rookie deal that the Cardinals agreed to when they made him the third pick in the 2004 NFL draft. As a base salary, the entire contract will count against the team's 2008 salary cap, which means about 15% of the cap is tied into one player.

That will make it extremely difficult for the Cardinals to hang onto all the other players they want to keep, including linebackers Karlos Dansby and Calvin Pace, running back Edgerrin James and both quarterbacks, Matt Leinart and Kurt Warner. They seem to already have resigned themselves to losing third receive Bryant Johnson.

You can't really blame Julius Jones for wanting to be a starting back somewhere next year. He'll be a free agent in March and it seems pretty clear he won't be back in Dallas. And although he started every regular-season game the last two years, he was benched in favor of Marion Barber in the NFC Divisional round against the Giants.

Barber also had forty more carries and almost 400 more yards than Jones in 2007, and he scored eight more touchdowns (10 to 2). Barber has earned the right to start, and both the Cowboys and Jones seem resigned to the fact that he's played his last game in Dallas. And rumors that Jerry Jones hearts Darren McFadden makes Jones' departure even less painful for the team that drafted him.

Jones' agent Ken Kremer, while attending the Senior Bowl workouts, said his client will field some "very strong offers'' from teams once free agency begins Feb. 29.

It'll be interesting to see which teams show interest in Jones. Free agent running backs seldom land huge contracts (Edgerrin James is one notable exception, and the Cards are still smarting over throwing all that cash at him), and while every team needs at least two solid runners, the fact that talent is available late in the draft, or even among undrafted free agents, drives down Jones' value.

Worst case, Jones signs a one-year deal (just as Jamal Lewis did with the Browns last off-season) and tries to make bank after a productive 2008 (just as Jamal Lewis is doing with the Browns now).

As they've done in the past, the Arizona Cardinals face many offseason questions about their running game. Will they get rid of Edgerrin James? Are J.J. Arrington and Marcel Shipp capable of being effective change-of-pace backs? And most importantly, can they find a way to improve by next season?

Well, regardless of what happens with James, the Cardinals have decided that another explosive back is absolutely necessary. And by all accounts, they have every intention on adding one during free agency.

But the question becomes, who's available? Unfortunately the free agent market isn't going to be heavily stocked with guys that are going to make a tremendous difference.

Michael Turner is an option, but there's no doubt he's going to get huge money to start somewhere. There's also Jamal Lewis and Justin Fargas, but they're likely to return to the Browns and Raiders respectively. So, who's left? Well, how about Julius Jones?

When the Arizona Cardinals signed running back Edgerrin James back in March of 2006, they figured it would put an end to their problems on the ground. Unfortunately, despite two 1,000+ yard seasons, that has not been the case.

In 2006, Arizona averaged only 3.2 yards per carry and 83.6 yards per game. This year, while slightly better, the team averaged just 3.6 yards per carry and 90.6 yards per game.

So now the question is, with $7 million due next season, will the Cardinals bring James back? Well, Edge isn't so sure himself.

"You never know what's going to happen," he said. "I came into the toughest situation you could possibly come in. Look what I've accomplished. I guess because it's me it's not enough. That's the crazy part. No matter what I do, it's not enough."

Since he's already under contract and likely to cost big bucks to release, Arizona would probably be better off just hanging onto Edge and hoping for the best. He's improved each of his first two years with the Cardinals and it's unlikely that they'd find anyone better on the free agent market.

That said, people can't help but be disappointed in the production out of James. Then again, it's not all his fault either.

To get you ready for week 16, FanHouse is previewing all 16 NFL games. Here is the Atlanta Falcons/Arizona Cardinals preview.

2007 Records:

Atlanta Falcons: 3-11 (4th in NFC South)
Arizona Cardinals: 6-8 (2nd in NFC West)

Last Game(s):

Buccaneers 37 - Falcons 3
Saints 31 - Cardinals 24

When the Falcons have the ball: After an embarrassing performance against Tampa Bay last week, the Falcons will look to get anything going tomorrow against the Cardinals. And pending an early hole, you can bet Jerious Norwood will finally get the carries Atlanta has been trying to give him for the last two weeks.

Arizona's defense will likely focus heavily on the run in an attempt to make Chris Redman, who went four of 15 for 34 yards and two interceptions last week, beat them. And if all goes according to plan, they'll be able to sit back and wait for a few costly turnovers to come their way.

You could talk all day about the Arizona Cardinals rebounding after an improbable loss to the San Francisco 49ers last week, but it would be irrelevant. Despite what the paper and the box score will say tomorrow, the Cleveland Browns beat them this afternoon. According to everyone but the game officials, that is.

With .00 left on the clock, Derek Anderson hit Kellen Winslow Jr. in the endzone for what appeared to be the game winning touchdown. However, upon review further discussion, the referees came to the conclusion that Winslow came down out of bounds, not that he was pushed out of bounds.

It was the incorrect call, but in the end, it won't make any difference. They can complain to the league all they want, but the bottom line remains the same: The Browns fall to 7-5, while the Cardinals improve to 6-6.

Unfortunately for the Cardinals, this controversial win came at a cost. Despite the victory an impressive turn back the clock-like performance courtesy of Edgerrin James, things will taste sour due to an injury to Anquan Boldin.

Final Score: Cardinals 27 - Browns 21

To get you ready for week 13, FanHouse is previewing all 16 NFL games. Here is the New Cleveland Browns/Arizona Cardinals preview.

2007 Records:

Arizona Cardinals: 5-6 (2nd in NFC West)
Cleveland Browns: 7-4 (2nd in AFC North)

Last Game(s):

49ers 37 - Cardinals 31
Browns 27 - Texans 17

When the Cardinals have the ball: Will the Cardinals be able to rebound after one of the most frustrating losses in the history of their franchise? That really is the big question going into this week, because moments like that could set a team back for a very long time. However, if you are able to find a bright spot in the mess, it's that Kurt Warner is a professional quarterback and he should be able to rally his team on Sunday.

The main objective for the Browns is to remind Arizona how things ended last week. That's right, if I were game-planning, I would encourage my defense to talk trash all afternoon. But obviously that's not all Cleveland will be looking to do. They'll aim to shut down Edgerrin James and do everything they can to contain the duo of Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin.

To get you ready for week 12, FanHouse is previewing all 16 NFL games. Here is the New San Francisco 49ers/Arizona Cardinals preview.

2007 Records:

Arizona Cardinals: 5-5 (2nd in NFC West)
San Francisco 49ers: 2-8 (t-3rd in NFC West)

Last Game(s):

Cardinals 35 - Bengals 27
Rams 13 - 49ers 9

When the Cardinals have the ball: After a strong start, Arizona's running game has begun to resemble more of what is has in years past. Edgerrin James has not had a 100 yard game since week two and is now averaging only 3.6 yards per carry. However, he had one of his better games of the season in week one against the 49ers, and will look to duplicate that this Sunday against a unit that gives up more than 122 rush yards per game.

On the other side of the ball, San Francisco will look to contain James, while putting as much pressure on Kurt Warner as possible. Arizona should expect a ton of different packages and blitzes from the 49ers as they will look to force a turnover or two. With little left to lose, they should be very aggressive.