Najeh Davenport was recently on NFL radio and he named the Lions and Cardinals as two teams that he'd like to play for this season. Even though they were only together for one season, Davenport cites a good working relationship with current Cardinal head coach, former Steeler offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt.

Granted it doesn't matter how many times Davenport drops the Cardinals name during interviews. They're either interested or they're not, but for now we just don't know. Whisenhunt thought enough of him two years ago to bring him in after he was cut by the Packers, but he's obviously not in the same situation right now with the Cardinals.

Update: Good news Cardinals fans, Rod Graves says the team has 'no interest' in Najeh Davenport, according to Kent Somers.

The 2002 draft for the Arizona Cardinals seemed promising at the time. The team was coming off an encouraging 7-9 season in the first full season under Dave McGinnis. They had the 12th overall pick and would have an additional third round pick, thanks to a compensatory selection. Oh but it didn't turn out quite so rosy.

First Round Pick: Wendell Bryant DT - Wisconsin 

Bryant was supposed to be a devestating defensive tackle who could not only stuff the run. He ran an impressive 4.77 forty heading into the draft after a senior season that saw him rack up 16.5 tackles for loss and 8 sacks. Bryant's game didn't translate to the NFL though considering that he only lasted three seasons in the league. He would play in a total of 29 games, starting nine of them. Bryant ended his career with just 39 tackles and 1.5 sacks. Bryant never caught on with another team after being cut before the 2005 season.

Other possible selections: Jeremy Shockey, Albert Haynesworth, Lito Sheppard

Second Round Pick: Levar Fisher LB - North Carolina State

Fisher was an undersized line backer who made a ton of plays at North Carolina State with dedication and heart. Unfortunately though, he proved an even bigger bust than the Cardinals first round pick. Fisher would also only play three seasons, but his line is even worse because his third season was wiped out by injuries. his time in amounted to 23 games, 15 of which he started, and 80 tackles. Fisher would sign with the Saints after the 2004 season but he would get cut during the following training camp.

Other possible selections: Clinton Portis, Michael Lewis, Antwan Randle El

Third Round Pick: Josh McCown QB - Sam Houston State 

McCown had an amazing combine after a breakout senior season at D-II Sam Houston State (after transferring from SMU) that saw him pass for nearly 3,500 yards and 32 touchdowns. Scouts questioned his decision making ability and consistency but others wrote that off to him having three offensive coordinators in four seasons of college ball. McCown went on to play four seasons in Arizona and would start over 20 games. He wouldn't become a starter until late in his second season but his play towards the end of 2003 would offer some hope (790 yards, 5 TDs and 2 INTs in final four games). He would start every game that he was healthy in 2004 but inconsistency was still the name of his game. He'd finish with 11 TD and 10 INTs in 14 games. The 2005 season, his final in Arizona,  would bring more inconsistency (9 TDs & 11 INTs) and more injuries (played in just 9 games). He has since bounced around from Detroit to Oakland and most recently in Miami.

Other possible picks: Chris Baker, Brian Westbrook, Chris Hope

Third Round Pick: Dennis Johnson DE - Kentucky

Johnson was an undersized (6'4 258), junior defensive end who had a breakout season with 12 sacks. He was labeled a 'game wrecker' by some even though most considered him an underachiever until his breakout season. He was just another in the line of underwhelming picks in this draft though considering that by 2004, he'd be playing in San Fransisco and by the 2005, he'd be out of the league. He'played in less than 30 games (10 starts) and finish his career with just 57 tackles and 3 sacks.

Other possible selections: Alex Brown, David Thorton, David Garrard

Fourth Round Pick: Nate Dwyer DT - Kansas

Dwyer carried the label of a "workout warrior" with a bench press over 500 pounds and a squat over 700 pounds. On the field at Kansas, he backed it up his senior season with 9 tackles for loss, 3 sacks and a first team All-Conference selection. Dwyer never got close to transitioning to the NFL game though. He'd spend most of the 2002 season on the practice squad and would be cut during camp prior to the 2003 season. He never appeared in an NFL game.

Other possible selections: Randy McMichael, Larry Foote, Najeh Davenport

Fifth Round Pick: Jason McAddley WR - Alabama

McAddley jumped up draft boards from a late round prospect (if drafted at all) to an middle round pick after after an impressive Senior Bowl and combine workout. Scouts wondered at the time how a guy who looked so good in practice yet end a four year college career with 71 receptions for 1,020 yards and 8 touchdowns. The Cardinals decided he was worth the gamble though and he actually ended up starting 8 games his rookie season thanks to an injury to David Boston (more to come on his new career in the upcoming week). McAddley ended his rookie season with 25 receptions for 362 yards and a touchdown but that would prove to be the high point of his career. He played the next three seasons for Arizona (2003), Tennessee (2004), and San Francisco (2005) and those three seasons amounted to a combined 13 receptions and his ticket out of the NFL.

Other possible selections: Aaron Kampman, Robert Royal

Sixth Round Pick: Josh Scobey RB/KR - Kansas State

Scobey came out after two very productive years at Kansas State, but there were questions about his running style (too upright) and his ability to be a complete running back. Many considered him nothing more than a special team return guy and to their credit, they were exactly right. Scobey has 27 career carries on his resume but his career has been marked by excelling on kickoff returns. He'd spend his first three seasons in Arizona and return over 100 kickoffs for 2,407 yards and a touchdown. He even led the league in kickoff return yardage his second season. After his third season, he'd move on to Seattle and spent just over two seasons there before moving onto Buffalo during the 2007 season.

Other possible selections: Justin Hartwig, Adrian Peterson (the other one), Chester Taylor

Seventh Round Pick: Mike Banks TE - Iowa State

Banks was considered one of the better blocking tight ends of the 2002 draft but he only lasted two seasons in the NFL, both with the Cardinals. He never caught a pass and fell out of favor with Dennis Green when he took over and he was cut prior to the 2004 season.

Other possible selections: Ronald Curry, Raheem Brock, Brett Keisel

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Wow. Eight picks and only two of them are still in the league. The Cardinals didn't keep a single pick past his rookie contract and they couldn't find a single decent starter out of the entire draft. If they'd have forfeited each pick at least I could have given them a F, but wasted money and at least 4 busts have to lower this to a F minus.

Just a point of reference, drafts like this are what cause a team to have 5 consecutive double digit loss seasons. Worst draft ever?

ESPN is reporting that Brett Farve is already hinting about coming out of retirement (somewhere Aaron Rodgers is crying). I guess I knew we'd hear about it all season but I figured he'd at least enjoy the off season. If he hadn't retired, we'd have heard stories all summer about how he wasn't ready to go through camp and he wasn't ready for practice. Now that he's 'retired' he wants to go to camp?

In the end, this has to hurt the mental game of Rodgers, especially when he hears comments like this:

"As a veteran and as a laeder of the team," Packers defensive back Al Harris said on ESPN's NFL Live, "I would welcome Brett with open arms. " He added: "We embrace Aaron. We support Aaron. Aaron is our quarterback. Brett is retired, but if he wants to come back, there will be some guys that wouldn't mind it."

Call me crazy but I'm glad we're from away from that situation. Who wants him to come back and who wants him to just go away?

Kent Somers is reporting that Rod Graves and Dansby's agent, Kirk Wood finally talked this week this week about a long term for Dansby and that more talks are scheduled for next week. Both sides have stated that they would like to get a
new deal in place before the July 15th deadline in order to not only free up cap space but also keep Dansby in Arizona for the foreseeable future. If a deal can't be reached, Dansby would play out this season (with $8 million guaranteed) and then be a free agent. Reports have surfaced recently that Dansby and his agent purposed a contract that would pay him about $9 million a season, but the Cardinals obviously didn't agree with that amount.

Speculation has been rampant since Dansby was franchised concerning how much it would cost to lock him up long term. Most people point to Calvin Pace's contract of 6 years for $42 million with $21.5 million guaranteed and think that Dansby's contract should be slightly north of those numbers. There another group (myself included) that thinks the Jets well overpaid for Pace and Somers points to the contracts recently signed by Seattle's Lofa Tatupa (six year extension, $40 million of new money, $18 million guaranteed), or Chicago's Lance Briggs (six years, $36 million, $13 guaranteed) as more reasonable barometers.

So, does anyone think that they'll get a deal done before the deadline and if so, what are the numbers? If they do, which I'd put as a serious long shot, I'd have to say something very close to Tatupa's contract.

To continue an ongoing series focusing on the Cardinals undrafted free agents, today let's look at a guy who was a three year starter in the PAC-10. Dennis Keyes started over 35 games at UCLA and finished his senior season with as the team leader in tackles.  He had an up and down career as a Bruin but he always had a reputation as a big hitter. Keyes never hesitated to lay the big hit either in the passing game or at the line of scrimmage in support of the run. With Rolle moving to free safety to compete for the job, there are several safeties in the mix but what does Keyes have to do in order to make an impact in 2008 and beyond? 

Why the deck is stacked against him: First and foremost, the Cardinals have plenty of depth at the safety position. Keyes played at free safety during college meaning that he's got to contend with Aaron Francisco,  Antrel Rolle and Matt Ware as well at FS and Oliver Celestin (another backup safety). Having five established safeties ahead of him will make it tough to make an impression, much less get on the field. Keyes also doesn't have great timed speed and will miss tackles when trying to go for the big hit. His lack of top end speed and stiff hips make it hard for him to keep up with receivers down the field and he struggles when matched up man-to-man.

Why he's got a chance: Keyes is has plenty of experience at a high level of competition meaning that his transition to the NFL won't be as drastic as other rookies. He plays fearless and makes plays all over the field, even against bigger, stronger players. He led his team in tackles and was fourth in the conference (8.83 per game) in 2007. Keyes' has good instincts and plays faster than he times, especially when closing on the ball. For as much as he struggles in man-to-man situations, he is solid in zone coverage when he can back pedal and react when the ball is in the air. At the start of his career, Keyes will have to make an impact on special teams and most importantly coverage units.

Bottom line: If Keyes wants to make the opening day roster, he'll have to be a special teams terror during the preseason. He's got the 'football' speed and demeanor to make an impact kickoff and punt coverage units. As far as the regular defensive group, I wouldn't be surprised if he moves to strong safety where his tackling ability can be used to support the run and his lack of coverage ability can be disguised a bit. He'll also have add some weight to his slender frame (6'1 205).  If he can get up to about 220 or so without losing any athleticism, I could see him being a capable backup at strong safety.

The Cardinals have made a consistent habit of picking up former Pittsburgh Steelers since Coach Whisenhunt moved to Arizona from the Burgh. The list includes the likes of Sean Morey, Chukky Okobi, Brian St. Pierre, Clark Haggans and Jerame Tuman among others. Their dedication to becoming the 'Steelers of the West' could be tested with the Steelers most recent cuts though. The Steelers made news over the weekend when they cut backup running back Najeh Davenport, along with three other rarely used players. Since we've looked at nearly every other free agent running back, here's a quick look at whether or not Davenport would thrive in Arizona.

Why he'd be the right guy: Make no mistake about it, Najeh Davenport is the definition of a career backup. In six NFL seasons, he's started a total of 3 regular season games (one playoff game) and hasn't ever really even pushed a starter for playing time. He's almost a 'tweener' type of back because of his mix of size (nearly 250 pounds) and his speed (had at least one 40 yard carry in 5 of 6 seasons). During the 2007 season, he flourished as the Steelers change of pace back and short yardage/goal line specialist. He ended the season with a career highs in carries (107), yards (499), rushing  touchdowns (5), receptions (18), and receiving touchdowns (2). He also contributes on special teams and was even was the Steelers top kickoff returner in 2006. All of that and he's still not 30 years old (turned 29 in February). I'll grant you that nothing he does is spectacular but just consider that the backup duo of Shipp and Arrington have combined for 179 yards in 2007 & 2006 combined.

Why he'd be square peg in this round hole: Even though Davenport would be an upgrade over either Shipp or Arrington, the problem with him coming to the desert is that his game closely resembles both Edge and Hightower. He excels when running between the tackles and has the size to get two yards when you need one, but that's also what Edge and Hightower do well. Najeh excelled in Pittsburgh because he was a complimentary change of pace back to 'Fast' Willie Parker, but that wouldn't be his role here. The Cardinals may also want to keep away from Davenport because him coming in would take snaps away from Tim Hightower and at least to this point, they sound very encouraged by his abilities. 

In the end, I doubt that the Cardinals make a serious run at Davenport, but if they did it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. Signing Davenport would mean that either Shipp or Arrington would simultaneously have to be cut (which I'd be all for), but I'd want his role to be clearly defined and somewhat limited. If they brought him in I'd hope that his role would be limited to kickoff returns (partnered with Breaston) and a third down back. That wouldn't cut into Hightower's development too much and would allow the Cardinals to upgrade their running back stable. So I pose the question to you, are you interested in yet another Steeler? Would he be a good fit here and where would rank on your 'wish list' of free agent backs?

As you flip your calendar over to the month of July today, take a highlighter and draw a big circle around the 25th. That will be the first official day of training camp and the first practice that is open to the public. Players will report on the 23rd (yes that means you, Boldin and Dockett) and they'll undergo a conditioning test on the 24th. With roughly three and a half weeks to go before camp though, I figured we could look at depth and potential battles at each position. We'll get the ball rolling with the tight ends.

The Cardinals have made a conscious effort to upgrade themselves at the tight end position in the past couple of drafts. After a couple of seasons trying to get by with undrafted free agents (Adam Bergen & Eric Edwards), the Cardinals finally decided to build the position through the draft. The 2006 draft would bring third rounder, Leonard Pope and the following draft they would use a seventh round pick on Ben Patrick. It was the first time that they had drafted two tight ends that close together since 1996, when they selected two in the same draft class (also a 3rd & 7th rounds). They also have an undrafted tight end in the mix, Troy Bienemann and an accomplished veteran force in Jerame Tuman. Looking towards 2008, the Cardinals seem to have the best group of tight ends to inhabit the desert in quite some time, but with four possible choices the biggest question could be: Who plays when and where?

Leonard Pope: Pope is the incumbent starter and should be first in line when the season starts. He hasn't quite lived up to the Cards' expectations yet, but he did show signs of becoming a legitimate receiving threat late in 2007 before going down with an injury in week 14. He has yet to catch 25 passes or top 250 yards but in his final 5 games last year, he started to develop into a reliable threat (14 receptions for 143 yards and 3 TDs). Those numbers aren't great but projected over a full season they be more than respectful at 45 receptions for over 450 yards and nearly 10 touchdowns. Pope still needs to become a more consistent blocker at the point of attack but with his height (6'8), he'll always be a red zone threat. He'll never be mentioned in the same breath with Gates, Gonzalez or Witten, but the Cardinals aren't asking him to be their #1 receiving threat. They just need him to work the middle of the field to keep the linebackers and safeties from concentrating solely on Fitz and Q.

Ben Patrick: Most fans said "who?" when they heard Patrick's name called late in the 2007 draft, but Patrick didn't disappoint in his rookie season. He stepped in and started 3 games (played in 8 total) when Pope went down and his play wasn't terrible for a 7th rounder trying to transition from D-II to the NFL level. His 7 receptions for 73 yards and two TDs didn't set the desert on fire but he did show some promise as both a receiver and a capable blocker. Patrick could eventually become a better blocker than Pope considering he's nearly 15 pounds heavier despite being four inches shorter. Patrick will have to fight for playing time though since Tuman was brought in to be the 'blocking tight end.'

Jerame Tuman: Tuman is another former Steeler to move to Arizona and most 
Cardinals' fans probably won't even notice his contribution to the team. Tuman isn't much of a receiving threat with just 43 receptions in nine NFL seasons, but he makes his living as a great blocker. Don't be surprised to see Tuman come in and serve as an extra lineman in short yardage and goal line situations. His greatest contribution to the Cardinals though could end up being his contributions to the development of Pope and Patrick. Tuman is a veteran who's been around a winning franchise his entire career and his experiences should help the younger guys develop the finer points of the game.

Troy Bienemann: Bienemann was undrafted after his final season at Washington State and an injury led to New Orleans cutting him prior to the 2006 season. He would sign with the Cardinals in April of 2007 and he would appear in all 16 games (including 4 starts). He had some decent moments but didn't do much to stand out. He'll likely have to have a great camp and preseason to make the opening day roster. He's a decent player but teams rarely carry four tight ends on the 53 man roster.

Alex Shor: The guy most of us have never heard of is a tight end who spent the summer of 2007 playing for the now defunct NFL Europe. He isn't much of a receiving threat but he's a capable blocker. His best case scenario for 2008 would be the practice squad but with three players who are the same age or younger than him at tight end, the deck is stacked against him.

Overall: The good news is that the Cardinals have very good depth at tight end with four players who have starting experience. The only thing that they lack is a dynamic, down the field threat. I'd expect Pope to have a breakout year, posting career highs in every category (as long as he stays healthy). With a new #3 receiver, look for Pope to come out of the gates strong until Leinart develops a repertoire with either  Breaston or Doucet. I wouldn't be terribly surprised if he's close to a double digit touchdown season. Patrick will get his share of playing time as well but will likely need an injury to Pope to get significant snaps. He'll still likely end up with double digit receptions and a couple of touchdowns, but not much more. Tuman will likely get most of his snaps on goal-line and short yardage plays and will probably end the season with just a handful of receptions. Bienemann, if he makes the roster, probably won't be active on game days unless one of the trio ahead of him is injured.

So what do you think about tight ends on the roster? Is this the best group in quite some time or just a group of four guys who'd have a hard time making any impact on another team?

The Arizona Cardinals took a chance on a former quarterback turned wide receiver who ran slower than expected prior to the draft in 2003. That picked turned into a two time Pro Bowler in his first five seasons. Anquan Boldin was a high school quarterback who moved to wide receiver in college, even though he moon-lighted at QB during his time at FSU. He ran a very pedestrian 4.72 forty at the combine and even though he ran quicker at his pro day (4.58), questions about his ability to get open at the NFL level remained.

Enter Early Doucet: another wide receiver with experience at QB but questionable forty times. His time (4.59) at the combine dropped the one time first round prospect to the third round and led to more comparisons between the two. They are both six foot tall and were within 7 pounds of each other at their respective combines (Q - 216 & ED - 209). Doucet recognized the similarities long before the combine though when he contacted Boldin through mutual friend before the 2007 season in an effort to get some advice from the accomplished star. Boldin has since taken Doucet under his wing both throughout last season but also in mini-camps shortly after the draft. Does all this really mean that Doucet is destined for stardom though?

Odds are Doucet isn't going to burst on the NFL scene with a 100 catch season or break rookie-records the way that Boldin did, but that's not what the Cardinals are expecting by any means. Doucet will most likely start out in the slot as the #3 or #4 receiver. From there he'll benefit from playing against lesser corners and should be able to be productive going over the middle and making tough catches in traffic. He'll be able to use his sure hands and shifty run ability to turn some short slants into decent gains. Look for him to put up numbers similar to Bryant Johnson's stats from his first three seasons with 400-500 yards and a couple of touchdowns. Doucet's role should increase as he grows in the offense, but as long as Boldin and Fitz are in the desert, Doucet will have to make his living in the slot.

So what do you guys expect out of Doucet in 2008 and in the next couple of seasons? Is he a future replacement for Q, or just a 'poor-man's Q'?

Unless you left the country this weekend, you probably heard about CBS Sports releasing their annual top 50 players in the NFL. Ultimately these kind of lists don't mean a single thing and are basically compiled to incite conversation (mission accomplished). If you haven't looked over the list, take a look and give me your thoughts. For what  it's worth here are the Cardinals players who made the list and my beefs with some of the guys who made it and some of the guys who didn't.

31. Larry Fitzgerald, WR, Arizona Cardinals: The Cardinals gave him a new contract in March because he's their go-to guy. He teams with Anquan Boldin to form one of the top receiving duos.

Just missed: Adrian Wilson, S, Arizona Cardinals

Now, there's only guy I can make a legitimate case for who should be on this list , Anquan Boldin. I'd have a much bigger case if there were more receivers on the list but there were only nine: Moss (4th), Owens (13th), Steve Smith (21st), Wayne (22nd), Andre Johnson (26th), Ocho Cinco (28th), Fitz (31st), Braylon Edwards (34th) and Wes Welker (48th). Of the guys on that list, I'd personally put Boldin ahead of Welker considering that Q has three seasons that were as good as or better than Welker's sole standout season. I guess that's what happens when you play for a media darling like the Patriots versus playing in the desert.

Other head scratchers:

Quarterback: Is Carson Palmer really the 8th best player in the entire league and 3rd best quarterback? Before you answer consider this:

QB1 - 61 games, 64.1 completion %, a combined QB rating of 90.1 and per game numbers of 244 yards, 1.71 TDs and1.03 INTs

QB2 - 93 games, 65.1 completion %, a combined QB rating of 93.2 and per game numbers of 258 yards, 1.63 TDs and 1.07 INTs

In case anyone is wondering QB1 is Palmer and QB2 is Kurt Warner. Now I'm not in any manner trying to say that Warner deserves to be on this list or that he's a better quarterback than Palmer, but I am trying to say that Palmer is highly overrated if he's considered anywhere close to a top 10 player in the NFL.

Tight End: First I'll go ahead and state that this is possibly my favorite position (partly because that's where I played in school) so I always try and follow the better tight ends in the league. The tight ends who made the list were Gates (24th), Kellen Winslow (44th) and Tony G (46th), but the name that jumps out to me that is missing is Jason Witten. I'd personally take Witten over either Winlsow or Gonzalez because he's the not only an excellent receiver, but also a good blocker (which Winslow isn't) and he's still young (which Gonzalez isn't) at just 26 years old.

A couple of other things that rubbed me the wrong way:

• Where's Jason Taylor? Sure he's 33 years old and his best days are behind him, but to think that a guy that's averaged over 12.5 sacks the past eight seasons isn't even in the top 50 is ridiculous.
  
• Please don't show this list to Darnell Dockett. He likes to compare himself to Tommie Harris and Harris was ranked 36th.
  

So what do you guys think of the list? What tweaks would you make and who deserves to be on here that isn't and who would you boot off?

I'm not sure what to make of the Steelers sending a scout to witness Kevin Jones' workout. He's still a young back and has the skills to be a great tailback but I don't see why the Steelers would be interested. They were one of only four teams that personally attended the workout (Dolphins, Packers and Lions) so it's not like sending a scout to the combine or something. The Browns also asked for a video of the workout, for whatever that's worth. The guy who attended the workout for the Steelers was Ron Hughes, director of college scouting.

Does anyone think the Steelers could actually be interested? Did they cut Davenport to open a spot for Jones? Or is this just a case of trying to cover all of their bases? Would anyone actually be excited if they brought him in?