The vibe around the Arizona Cardinals has been strange this offseason. Sure, they traded for wide receiver Marquise “Hollywood” Brown during Day 1 of the NFL Draft. That came after a quiet and underwhelming free agency period that saw the team lose edge rusher Chandler Jones, the team’s all-time franchise leader in sacks, and not replace him.
The Cardinals and their fans were back to being happy for about four days. All-Pro wideout DeAndre Hopkins was announced to be suspended for the first six games of the regular season. Weeks later, the team tragically lost one of their starters in cornerback Jeff Gladney.
News broke Tuesday morning that center Rodney Hudson was not present for mandatory minicamp. There is speculation that he may retire from the NFL, which would be another massive blow to the Cardinals.
The team must make another impact move that makes the team significantly better and brings up the energy surrounding the team. One way they could possibly do that is by calling the Chicago Bears about All-Pro edge rusher Robert Quinn.
Quinn has had a career resurgence with the Bears after a couple of down years with the Rams and Dolphins. He had 11.5 sacks with the Cowboys in 2019 which earned him a massive contract from the Bears. Last season, he had a whopping 18.5 sacks.
The 2021 second-team All-Pro and Pro Bowl selection was incredible last season on a Bears team that wasn’t very good. He also operated as the sole pass rusher for the majority of the season after Khalil Mack missed most of the season.
Quinn did not report to Bears’ mandatory minicamp amidst trade rumors that have been running all offseason. CBS Sports reported his desire to get a change of scenery and not be on a rebuilding team. The Bears, after shipping away Khalil Mack, are very obviously looking to acquire draft capital for their aging standouts.
Outside of drafting two rookies in the third round, the Cardinals did nothing by way of replacing Chandler Jones in free agency. Quinn, who is roughly the same age, would fill the void of an elite edge rusher. When Jones and J.J. Watt were both healthy early in the season, the Cardinals defense was elite.
While it may not make sense to some to let Jones walk and bring in another edge rusher of the same age (32), perhaps the Cardinals didn’t want to let him go. Jones did previously mention in an interview that he thought a lot about staying with the Cardinals, which doesn’t sound like them just letting him walk.
Robert Quinn, coming off the best season of his career, would make the Cardinals’ defense exponentially better. Due to his age, it’s probable he could be had for a mid-round pick in next year’s draft. He has a cap hit of $17 million this season but a portion of that would have to be paid by the Bears.
Despite their lack of aggressiveness in free agency, the Cardinals have money to spend. This would be a wise way to use it.
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