Arizona Cardinals: Sean Weatherspoon Brings Huge Upside

By Dan Schmelzer | Mar 10, 2015

The Arizona Cardinals are an interesting team heading in to the 2015 season. They were one of the best teams in the league last year, starting out 9-1, before massive amounts of injuries severely hurt their run down the stretch. Heading in to this off season, the Cardinals expect to have a majority of their roster from last season back, but there are some holes to fill across the roster.

After restructuring a few major deals, the Cardinals now have some cap space to work with to improve their roster, and have already gotten started. According to Rand Getlin of Yahoo Sports, the Cardinals will sign free agent linebacker Sean Weatherspoon to a one-year contract, worth a little less than $4 million.

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With Larry Foote now a member of the coaching staff, Daryl Washington’s situation in question after coming off of a year-long suspension and Kevin Minter not exactly playing up to his potential, the Cardinals entered this off season with a major need at inside linebacker.

While Weatherspoon may not be the only move the Cardinals make at the position, he is certainly an interesting option who represents a lot of upside going forward.

Weatherspoon was a first round pick (19th overall) by the Atlanta Falcons in the 2010 NFL Draft. He has been very productive, and shown a lot of potential while on the field, but injuries have severely held him back during his five-year NFL career.

He missed all of last season with a torn Achilles that he suffered in June, and nine games in 2013 with varying foot and knee injuries. Weatherspoon’s inability to stay healthy has put a huge damper on his career, and is clearly still a concern going forward.

While injury prone may be the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about Weatherspoon, he was productive when able to play for the Falcons. In 47 career games played (all of which were starts after his rookie year), Weatherspoon has 216 total career tackles, eight sacks and two interceptions. Playing mostly outside linebacker in the Falcons’ 4-3 defense, Weatherspoon showed great athleticism by flying all over the field against both the run and pass game.

This one-year deal is seemingly a “prove-it” contract for Weatherspoon, as he looks to regain value by staying healthy and being productive this season. If that happens he will likely test the market for a big payday next off season. The Cardinals signed cornerback Antonio Cromartie to a similar deal last year. Cromartie went on to have a great 2014 season with Arizona, and is now one of the most valuable defensive backs on the open market.

Can Weatherspoon be a valuable addition to the Cardinals on a one-year prove it deal, similarly to what Pro Bowler Antonio Cromartie did for the team in 2014? Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Weatherspoon is expected to compete for a spot as one of the Cardinals’ middle linebackers in their 3-4 defense. While he has not played much at the position before, Weatherspoon has the size (6,1″, 241 pounds) and athleticism to be a valuable player in the middle of the Cardinals’ defense.

If Washington does not return for 2015, pass coverage will be something that the Cardinals will lack once again at middle linebacker. With good speed, athleticism and field awareness, Weatherspoon is considered to be a solid pass defender for the linebacker position. That will certainly be valuable for the Cardinals, and will likely get Weatherspoon plenty of playing time.

All of this depends on his ability to stay healthy, which Weatherspoon has not been able to do for quite a while.

This deal being only a one-year contract for a relatively low amount of money gives the Cardinals the upside of Weatherspoon, without much downside. If he cannot prove his ability to stay healthy through 2015, the Cardinals simply move on.

Do not expect this to be the only move the Cardinals make at the inside linebacker position this off season. There are other free agent options for the team to consider, trade options like the 49ers’ Michael Wilhoite make plenty of sense and there are some draft prospects (mostly namely Eric Kendricks of UCLA) could also be under consideration.

The Cardinals are a very good team who have to fill in some weak spots across their roster. While the injuries are obviously a concern, Weatherspoon has the talent and upside to fill arguably their most obvious need.

Next: Arizona Cardinals Seven-Round 2015 NFL Mock Draft

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