Sitting at 4-8, there are obviously a number of players on the Arizona Cardinals who have had disappointing seasons in 2022. Whether a display of bad coaching or roster deficiencies, the Cardinals have taken a nose dive from last season.
For various reasons, some players stand out more than others in their contributions to the teams’ struggles. Let’s take a look at who those players might be.
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C Rodney Hudson
Hudson has missed the majority of the season with a lingering knee injury and the offense has struggled without him.
Part of the team’s offensive success in 2021 was having their full complement of wide receivers with Hudson, who is still an elite center in both pass protection and identifying opposing defenses.
With Hudson out, the Cardinals’ interior pass protection has been terrible and he is almost certainly not returning to action this season. He appears likely to retire after mulling it in the offseason.
The Cardinals will once again be in the market for a premier center, which explains their interest in Tyler Linderbaum in the draft.
WR A.J. Green
Green had a sort of resurgent season last year. He was excellent as the No. 2 to DeAndre Hopkins and surpassed 800 receiving yards. The Cardinals’ offense was explosive with both Green and Hopkins in the fold.
This season, Green has just 121 receiving yards on the season. He’s had two big moments on the season, those being the game-tying two-point conversion in Las Vegas and his touchdown reception against the Rams.
Overall, however, Green has not been an effective receiver for the Cardinals and appears to be trending toward the end of his career. His best game of the season was against the 49ers with 50 receiving yards, most of which came in garbage time.
WR Robbie Anderson
Anderson joined the team following the injury to Hollywood Brown and was expected to operate as the No. 2 receiver with DeAndre Hopkins until Brown returned.
In four games with the Cardinals since being acquired from the Panthers, Anderson has just 13 receiving yards. His lone impact play was a 17-yard reception against the Chargers, but prior to that, he had minus-4 yards as a whole with the team.
Anderson was expected to at least contribute to the passing attack to help keep the team in contention at midseason. Unfortunately for Anderson and the Cardinals, that has not happened and the team now sits on the edge of elimination.
