Training Camp Preview: Wide Receivers
The first week of the 2022 NFL season is still weeks away, but training camp is just around the corner. The Cardinals coaches and players will report to State Farm Stadium for their annual training camp on July 26 with the first practice the following day.
While some players will glide through the practices with their role on the team guaranteed, others will be fighting to find a place on the 53-man roster. In this series, we’ll take a look at every position group and the players who have a spot on the roster protected and those who will be battling for a roster role
Wide Receivers
Like most of the Cardinals offense, the question isn’t which players will be starting come Week 1 but how will head coach Kliff Kingsbury and general manager Steve Keim utilize some of the depth pieces in the receiving room.
Last season, that depth was put to the test when DeAndre Hopkins was sidelined during the second half of the season due to injury. In place of Hopkins, Antoine Wesley stepped up to start in four games. In his four starts, Wesley scored three touchdowns and had a total of 110 yards on eight receptions.
Hopkins will return to the field in Week 7 due to a six-game suspension for a negative PED test result last season. Wesley may see time again as a replacement for Hopkins on the field, but all eyes will be on Marquise Brown.
Kyler Murray's former Oklahoma teammate reunites with his old quarterback this season following three seasons with the Baltimore Ravens. Brown earned his first 1,000-yard season in 2021 and now joins one of the NFL’s most electrifying offenses, which only makes the possibilities more exciting for Arizona. Brown is Kingsbury's dream receiver, one that can stretch the field vertically and occupy multiple defenders.
A.J. Green and Rondale Moore will return following their inaugural seasons on the roster. While Green is in the back part of his career and hoping to maintain last year's productivity, Moore is looking to make large strides following his rookie season. The door is open for a breakout season.
With last year's team receiving leader Christian Kirk now wearing a Jacksonville Jaguars uniform, Moore is primed to assume the role as the team's slot receiver.
Returning from last season are Andy Isabella, Greg Dortch and Andre Baccellia, the latter of whom was on the practice squad. Isabella has had a complicated tenure with the Cardinals ever since his first season in 2019. The receiver has yet to surpass 250 receiving yards in a season and has seen his play time dwindle. In 2020, Isabella participated in 34% of the offensive snaps, but saw that number decline to 5% last season. The former second-round pick has been rumored to be on the trade block several times and his declining play-time could see his tenure with the Cardinals ending soon.
Two of the new faces in the receiving room will be former Atlanta Falcon Christian Blake and Victor Bolden Jr.. Bolden was signed to the roster late last week. Bolden played in the NFL from 2017 to 2018, but made waves in the USFL this year.
With the Birmingham Stallion, he totaled 415 yards on 42 catches. After the Stallions were crowned USFL champions, Bolden was named the championship game MVP after a 64-yard performance and catching the game-winning touchdown.
Rookie receivers are JaVonta Payton and Jontre Kirklin who were both undrafted this year. Both players could vie as special-teams contributors.
Overview: If Brown, Moore and Green can look as good on the field as they do on paper then the addition of Hopkins in Week 7 could make this offense challenging to overcome for opposing defenses.
