2020 Cardinals player grades: Inside linebacker
The Arizona Cardinals went through many ups and downs last season, and at their peak looked like one of the most formidable teams in the league. To get to where they were this season just two years removed from having the worst record in the NFL, they had to go through a lot of roster turnover.
In the next part of this series, we will be looking back at each inside linebacker who recorded a snap for Arizona this season and grade their performance.
This is the grading scale used:
A: Player Exceeded Expectations
B: Player Met Expectations
C: Player Did Not Meet Expectations
D: Player’s Poor Play Creates A Problem
F: Player Is A Liability
Jordan Hicks
Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports
2020 Grade: C+
Coming off a 2019 season that was perhaps the strongest of his career, Hicks struggled to replicate that impact in 2020. His statistics dropped — 150 tackles, 1.5 sacks and three interceptions in 2019 vs. 118 tackles, no sacks and one pick in 2020 — but more than that was the Hicks that flew all over the field the previous year was missing. Rather it was the role change/possible confidence hit that occurred with De’Vondre Campbell and Isaiah Simmons both being brought in over the offseason or just a crashing back to earth for the seven-year veteran, Hicks’s average play led to him taking a pay cut this offseason.
De’Vondre Campbell
Paul Rutherford-USA TODAY Sports
2020 Grade: C+
Campbell was signed last offseason as a complement to Hicks and, all things considered, he fulfilled that role. However, he missed his fair share of tackles (11.6%) and was inconsistent in coverage. He remains a free agent, and Arizona likely has opted to move on from him in order to give more playing time to their 2020 first-round pick, Isaiah Simmons, who is next.
Isaiah Simmons
Paul Rutherford-USA TODAY Sports
2020 Grade: C+
This grade is interesting. The “C” grade is not an actual product of Simmons’s on-field play, but rather a knock against the organization that drafted him. From Kliff Kingsbury to Vance Joseph to the front office, the Arizona Cardinals presented Simmons as a versatile defensive piece who would “erase” other playmakers, especially in the NFC West. But as the season unfolded, the lack of a concrete plan for their 2020 eighth overall pick became obvious. Even after impressive showings (for example, a 10 sack, 2 TFL, 1 INT game against Seattle in Week 11), Simmons still didn’t become the defensive cornerstone he will need to be in order to thrive. After said game, in which Simmons was used in 68% of defensive snaps, the team only deplored him 30% of the time the following week, which ended up being a close, three-point loss to New England. There is no telling how both Simmons' rookie season and the team’s success overall could’ve improved if the team had utilized him correctly, but this season Isaiah Simmons ultimately did not meet expectations, leading to a sub “B” grade.
Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
2020 Grade: B+
Vallejo progressed in his role with the team in 2020 from a key special teamer to a solid defensive backup. He made several big-time plays as a run stuffer in 2020, and earned a 2 year, $4.1 million contract as a reward. With De'Vondre Campbell still unsigned, I expect Vallejo to be the team's primary depth/rotational ILB on 3rd-and-short going forward.
Zeke Turner
(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
2020 Grade: A
Turner is another player who took a step up in his role in 2020, becoming one of, if not the most valuable special teams player on the team. He earned a $2.1 million RFA tender as a result that all but guarantees he will be back in 2021. Listen to the latest from Cards Wire's Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Spotify. Latest show:
Previous shows:
and
1
1
