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Arizona Cardinals' Michael Bidwill eyeing a 'very active' free agency

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Arizona Cardinals' Michael Bidwill eyeing a 'very active' free agency


The Arizona Cardinals turned quite a few heads this past season despite being at a clear talent deficit with a whole lot of rookies thrust into meaningful roles from the jump.

A 4-13 record isn’t anything to be jumping for joy about, but plenty of growth was noticeably made.

Now, it’s all about building upon the successes that came out of last year to keep those good feelings churning out of Tempe. A good way to do just that is through free agency, where the Cardinals are expected to busy under second-year general manager Monti Ossenfort.

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“When you look at going into this free agency period, I don’t know exactly where we’re going to spend, but Monti knows he has the resources to go out there and get the job done,” Bidwill told Arizona Sports’ Bickley & Marotta on Friday. “We’ve talked about that at length. He’s going to be smart about it.

“We know we’re close and we also know there’s been some changes in the NFC West and it’s time for us to really take advantage of this opportunity.”

Last season, it was more about filling a roster depleted from the previous regime’s transgressions with more risk-free options — short-term and inexpensive athletes — rather than going out and adding a handful of legit playmakers that could really move the needle for Arizona at any of its main areas of weaknesses.

That’s not to say Arizona didn’t strike gold in inside linebacker and 2023 leading tackler Kyzir White, but he was by far the biggest splash in last year’s class on a cost-effective two-year, $10 million deal. And he was also one of only a few outside additions to actually land a multi-year deal.

At a glance, cornerback, defensive line, wide receiver and pass rusher had the biggest discrepancies last season. The needs are clearly there and with nearly $44 million in effective cap space to spend as of Friday, there is going to be money to spend. The NFL implementing a $30 million increase in salary cap — up $255.4 million from $224.8 million in 2023 — certainly helps.

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There’s also a good chance that number increases by Arizona freeing up even more cap space through releases. For example, moving on from offensive lineman D.J. Humphries, who likely won’t play for much of the year after suffering a torn ACL late in 2023, would create nearly $16 million in cap space attached with a dead-money hit of $6.9 million.

And while Ossenfort told Bickley & Marotta on Thursday that Arizona is ultimately going to build upwards through the NFL Draft, hitting on a few free agents — regardless of which position of need it is — can go a long way in taking that next big step forward in 2024.

Bidwill believes Ossenfort is the right man for the job.

“I know we got a great one (in Ossenfort). You just look at the last year, the great success we had in free agency and in the draft and some of the moves that he made throughout the season,” Bidwill said Friday. “Looking now, we’re just a couple of weeks from free agency and I’m super excited about his plan going into free agency.

“We don’t know exactly what it is, because we’re not sure which players will be on the market, but I know we’re going to be very active.”

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Person accused of making terroristic threats to medical facility in northern Arizona

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Person accused of making terroristic threats to medical facility in northern Arizona


PAGE, AZ (AZFamily) — A person accused of making terroristic threats toward a northern Arizona medical facility was arrested Friday morning.

Just after 10:30 p.m., police received a report of a person calling the facility and threatening to kill staff and Native Americans, according to the Page Police Department.

Authorities said staff placed the facility on lockdown until officers identified the suspect and arrested them outside their home.

The suspect was booked on charges of disorderly conduct, threatening and intimidating, and making terroristic threats. Police have not publicly identified the person.

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“The Page Police Department is grateful for and supports the medical staff’s decision to put the medical facility into lockdown until the suspect was arrested and the situation was rendered safe,” the department said in a Facebook post.

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NFL mock draft: 4-round projections for Arizona Cardinals

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NFL mock draft: 4-round projections for Arizona Cardinals



In these four-round projections, the Arizona Cardinals don’t get a tackle until the fourth round.

We are just days away from the 2026 NFL draft, and that means some final mock drafts. What direction will the draft take the Arizona Cardinals?

Draft Wire’s Curt Popejoy put together a four-round mock draft for the Cardinals. They go defense early but rebuild the offense for 2026 and moving forward, including landing their potential franchise quarterback.

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Cardinals 4-round mock draft

Here are the players in the first four rounds Popejoy projects for Arizona.

  • Round 1: Ohio State EDGE/LB Arvell Reese
  • Round 2: Alabama QB Ty Simpson
  • Round 3: Clemson WR Antonio Williams
  • Round 4: Florida OT Austin Barber

What we think of the picks

The Cardinals want to trade out of the third pick and draft a tackle, so not getting a tackle until Round 4 seems unlikely, although they did meet with Barber. They do have options at right tackle for 2026 already on the roster.

Reese would be a great pick if they don’t trade back, as they badly need pass-rushing help off the edge.

Drafting Simpson seems inevitable at this point, so it has to be in a mock draft, although the feeling is they will need to go up into Round 1 again to get him.

Williams has speed and is almost six feet tall, but he does have short arms.

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.

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Detroit Lions NFL Draft Injury Report: Arizona State CB Keith Abney

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Detroit Lions NFL Draft Injury Report: Arizona State CB Keith Abney


Due to significant injuries to the CB position last year which includes a shoulder surgery for Terrion Arnold, the Lions CB position scored a 6/10 need on my Lions Defensive Draft Need Rankings. Thus, an early-round selection of a young, healthy prospect like Keith Abney would not come as a surprise. He enters the draft with very low medical concern level.

Here is the excerpt from my medical report on Keith Abney:

(Ages in parentheses are at start of 2026 season and are factored into the concern level. Injury info and ages based on available public information are unverified and subject to update. Games played data courtesy of sports-reference.com.)

Keith Abney, CB (21) – Arizona State

Projected round 2-3. #43 on Jeff Risdon board Feb 19.

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Concern level 0/10

There is an isolated report of a hand injury but no corroborating information. Even if the hand injury is true, that’s of minimal to no long-term concern.

His availability in his final two seasons has been perfect. Overall, Abney appears to be medically clean and is at an excellent age.

He finished college with 6 INT and 21 PBU.

For more Lions coverage, follow us on X, @TheLionsWire, and give our Facebook page a likeFollow Jimmy on X, @JimmyLiaoMD

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