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5 Dark horse NFL Super Bowl contenders primed to shine in 2021

By Randy Gurzi

GLENDALE, ARIZONA - DECEMBER 06: Quarterback Kyler Murray #1 of the Arizona Cardinals looks to pass during the second half against the Los Angeles Rams at State Farm Stadium on December 06, 2020 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
GLENDALE, ARIZONA - DECEMBER 06: Quarterback Kyler Murray #1 of the Arizona Cardinals looks to pass during the second half against the Los Angeles Rams at State Farm Stadium on December 06, 2020 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
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NFL 2021
GLENDALE, ARIZONA – DECEMBER 20: Quarterback Kyler Murray #1 of the Arizona Cardinals high fives wide receiver Christian Kirk #13 during the NFL game against the Philadelphia Eagles at State Farm Stadium on December 20, 2020 in Glendale, Arizona. The Cardinals defeated the Eagles 33-26. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

2. Arizona Cardinals

When the Arizona Cardinals hired Kliff Kingsbury ahead of the 2019 season, they found themselves facing a lot of criticism. The former quarterback had come off a losing season with Texas A&M which dropped him 35-40 over the course of six seasons with the Red Raiders.

Usually, when a coach doesn’t win at the collegiate level, he doesn’t get a sniff in the NFL but Kingsbury did. Several clubs wanted to reach out to him for a coordinator job but the Cardinals made a huge leap by taking him as the head coach.

Things got even more interesting in the desert as Kingsbury and general manager Steve Keim then decided to use the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft on Kyler Murray — which meant they were giving up on Josh Rosen who Keim took at No. 10 the prior season.

That move proved to be the right one as Murray has made big strides with Arizona and Rosen is trying to catch on with the 49ers — his third team since being traded by the Cardinals. Last year, Murray had his team in contention with a 6-3 mark but they fizzled out down the stretch and went 8-8 — just missing the playoffs. Still, it was a big improvement from their 5-10-1 season in 2019.

Now, they add J.J. Watt, Malcolm Butler, and A.J. Green to their roster. They’ll also get Chandler Jones back and took Zaven Collins in the first round this offseason.

All these moves could propel them into the postseason and with the playmaking ability of Murray — and wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins — they could be a team to watch in the NFC.

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