Among the biggest changes to the Arizona Cardinals roster this offseason were those in the wide receiver room, with the release of DeAndre Hopkins and the signing of former Colts and Eagles WR Zach Pascal.
Pascal’s exact role is yet to be determined but should figure more prominently after the release of Hopkins.
He is the team’s most underappreciated player, according to NFL.com’s Cynthia Frelund.
It’s typically a good sign when a coach changes teams and immediately adds a familiar face to his new roster. That’s what Jonathan Gannon did with Pascal. The veteran wideout doesn’t figure to be a fantasy monster with the Cardinals, but he gives the transitioning team a physical and reliable presence both in the slot and out wide. Last season in Philadelphia, Pascal was targeted on just four passes of 10-plus air yards, catching two for 45 yards. The small sample size is hardly surprising, given that he was in the same receiving corps as A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith and tight end Dallas Goedert. But if you look at the three seasons prior to that when Pascal was in Indianapolis, he received a combined 105 such targets, catching 50 and scoring nine touchdowns. That completion percentage of 47.6 on such throws ranks ahead of star WRs like Mike Williams, Terry McLaurin and D.J. Moore during the 2019-2021 span. Furthermore, Pascal impacts the game when he’s not getting targeted, too. According to PFF’s grading, the wideout was the third-best run blocker on the 2022 Eagles, behind only center Jason Kelce and left tackle Jordan Mailata.
It is honestly difficult to say who on the roster is not appreciated yet. No one has played a single snap under new head coach Jonathan Gannon.
Pascal, though, has a great relationship with Gannon, is a dog on special teams, is a fierce blocker in the run game and can give Arizona some offensive upside.
In his one year with the Eagles, he only had 15 catches for 150 yards and a touchdown, but he had consecutive years in 2019 and 2020 where he had more than 600 receiving yards, scored five touchdowns and averaged more than 14 yards per catch.
There isn’t an expectation for him to produce at that level in Arizona, but he can at least do that.
Does that make him underappreciated?
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