Loss of BJ Ojulari puts more pressure on Cardinals defense, General manager Monti Ossenfort

The Arizona Cardinals were on borrowed time. They had made it through the first week of training camp without any injuries. Even when center Hjalte Froholdt went down in drills on July 30, it was clear that he had dodged a major setback when he walked out of the stadium with a normal gait and no aids on his legs.

When asked about the team’s run of luck, coach Jonathan Gannon made sure to knock on the wood podium in the Cardinals press conference room. But when addressing the team’s open roster spot, GM Monti Ossenfort acknowledged the inevitable.

“The health of the team certainly has played into [keeping] that [spot open],” he said. “As things start piling up — knock on wood, hopefully they don’t but inevitably, it is football and the pads are going on so players are gonna get nicked up. Then it becomes a roster management; a rep management of where we’re going to need players.”

That need is now clear. Multiple sources reported that linebacker BJ Ojulari suffered a torn ACL in Friday’s practice. Gannon announced Saturday that the second-year linebacker will miss the rest of the season and will have surgery. The team’s weakness at edge rusher is now a major concern.

To be clear, it’s not the only concern on a defensive unit that finished among the league’s bottom feeders in numerous statistical categories. Arizona finished 28th in takeaways (17) last season. That has to improve.

The Cardinals need to stop the run. They were last in rushing yards allowed (2,434), second to last in yards allowed per carry (4.7) and 28th in rushing TDs allowed (19), but Ossenfort at least tried to address that concern with the signings of defensive linemen Bilal Nichols, Justin Jones and linebacker Mack Wilson Sr.

Arizona also has questions at cornerback, but Ossenfort tried to answer those by signing free agent Sean-Murphy Bunting and drafting Max Melton and Elijah Jones in the second and third rounds, respectively.

Those additions could help, but it will be difficult to judge the cornerbacks’ progress if the Cardinals can’t get to the QB. No coverage is going to stand up if NFL quarterbacks have too much time, and the Cardinals are going to face a tough run of quarterbacks early in the season, including Buffalo’s Josh Allen, Detroit’s Jared Goff, San Francisco’s Brock Purdy, Green Bay’s Jordan Love and the LA Chargers’ Justin Herbert.

Last season, the Cardinals finished 30th in sacks (33), 31st in QB pressures (98), and last in QB knockdowns (23). It’s an area that has to improve for a defense that also finished 31st in points allowed (455), 29th in yards allowed per play (5.7), and 31st in first downs allowed (369).

Unlike the aforementioned positional concerns, Ossenfort did nothing to address the team’s need for more pressure. Ossenfort tacitly admitted that he didn’t like the market for such players, and he also wanted to see what some of his own personnel could do with more opportunity and more maturity. 

Ojulari was probably at the head of the line when discussing his hope for improvement.

“He has a complete skill set to play within what we do,” defensive coordinator Nick Rallis said just before Friday’s fateful practice. “He’s been setting some really good edges. I’m always on him, challenging to play lower than the opponent, and when he does that, I really like what I see in the run and the pass games.”

Wth Ojulari no longer an option, the Cardinals have a couple paths they could take.

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Cardinals’ internal options

The team just signed outside linebacker Zaven Collins to a two-year extension worth $14 million ($11.25 million in guarantees) and they are hoping for vast improvement from their 2021 first-round (No. 16) draft pick. Collins only has 5.5 sacks and 10 QB hits in three seasons, but it’s important to remember that he played inside linebacker his first two seasons before Gannon moved him outside last season.

Zaven Collins on his relationship with HC Jonathan Gannon and the plan the coaching staff laid out for him.@PHNX_Cardinals | #TrainingCamp pic.twitter.com/9c0qo4xf2B

— Johnny Venerable (@JohnnyVenerable) August 3, 2024

Wilson also hopes to have more opportunities off the edge.

“I rushed in college (at Alabama) a little bit and I played some outside linebacker in high school as well, so it was always there,” he said. “I didn’t do it in Cleveland, but I told (the Patriots) I could pass rush and they gave me an opportunity. I knew I always had it. Athletically, I can bend, I can do a lot of things that people don’t know.

“When I’m out there, honestly, I just feel like I can’t be stopped. Especially on the edge. It’s a different feel when I’m on the edge. If I get a good get-off, it’s wraps.”

The other wild card is 2024 first-round pick Darius Robinson, who could provide some push from the interior of the line, or maybe the edge. Robinson has the versatility that Gannon and Rallis love, allowing him line up anywhere from a three-technique tackle to a seven-technique edge rusher. 

The other roster options include Dennis Gardeck (who led the Cardinals in sacks last season with six to go along with 12 quarterback hits), Victor Dimukeje, Jesse Luketa, Cam Thomas, Tyreke Smith and fifth-round draft pick Xavier Thomas.

“You see some of the things of why we drafted him where we drafted him flash.”

Arizona Cardinals HC Jonathan Gannon on first round DL Darius Robinson. @PHNX_Cardinals pic.twitter.com/0vRB54HGOh

— Bo Brack (@BoBrack) August 1, 2024

External options

Even before Ojulari’s injury, Ossenfort acknowledged the offerings available on the market. 

“We are well aware of all the players that are out there in free agency right now and how they would help or not help us,” he said. “Waiver claims will come up here at the end of August and early September. We’re open to anything in terms of roster building that could go on and help us.”

Among the options still on the free-agent market: 

• Yannick Ngakoue, 29, had 19.5 sacks the past two seasons between Las Vegas and Indianapolis, but slipped to four last season in Chicago. 
• Carl Lawson, 29, had seven sacks with the Jets in 2022, but he played just in just six games in 2023 while dealing with a back injury, and he finished the season with just five tackles (two solos) and no sacks.
• Charles Harris, 29, was limited to 19 games and 2.5 sacks the past two seasons in Detroit.
• Tyus Bowser, 29, had 19.5 sacks in six seasons in Baltimore, but missed the entire 2023 season with a knee injury.
• Justin Houston, 35, was limited to half a sack in seven games last season before landing on injured reserve with a hamstring issue on Nov. 4. The Panthers granted the four-time Pro Bowler’s request to be released in December. He had 9.5 sacks in 2022 with Baltimore.

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There is also the possibility of a trade. The Eagles just traded former Cardinal Haason Reddick in March to the Jets for a conditional 2026 third-round pick. Reddick has refused to report to training camp without a new contract. He has 50.5 sacks over the past four seasons with the Cardinals, Panthers and Jets.

Matthew Judon, who will turn 32 this month, is also in a contract dispute. Judon led the Patriots with 12.5 sacks his first year (2021) with the team. He jumped to 15.5 sacks in 2022, and had four sacks in four games in 2023 before missing the rest of the season with a torn biceps.  

Judon’s four-year deal with the Patriots was worth $56 million. He will make $6.5 million in base salary this season, but he told reporters “I ain’t giving no money away.” 

After the annual Red and White practice at State Farm Stadium, PHNX Sports’ Johnny Venerable and Bo Brack discussed the Cardinals’ dire need at edge rusher on Saturday’s PHNX Cardinals show.

Before the Ojulari injury, Ossenfort could have made a credible argument that he wanted to let his players progress first before inserting a veteran into the lineup who might stunt their development.

“That certainly goes into every [situation],” he said. “If we add a player, what does this mean for the other guys in the room?” 

But with Ojulari out, it’s a much harder stance to maintain. The Cardinals have the fifth-most salary cap room available in the league ($35.3 million), per overthecap.com. Ossenfort will have to decide if the cost is too great to go the trade route, but he also has to weigh another cost. 

The Cardinals believe they are ready to win right now. They may not be Super Bowl material yet, but the internal belief is that they can contend for a playoff spot this season with an array of offensive options, a happy and healthy Kyler Murray, and the aforementioned additions on defense.

Ossenfort is not beholden to fan or media opinions when it comes to roster building. He can’t be and he shouldn’t be. He has a much better understanding of both processes than the variety of self-proclaimed experts in those two spaces.

But he is beholden to his own team. Players take cues from their managers and coaches. They understand what it means to be committed to winning. They can see when a manager or coach is, or is not.

If Ossenfort doesn’t make a move to fill Ojulari’s spot, what message will he be sending to his players?

Top photo of BJ Ojulari via Getty Images

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