Fantasy Football 2014: 5 Arizona Cardinals You Should Target on Draft Day
In fantasy football circles the Arizona Cardinals have been Larry Fitzgerald and little else in recent years, but that changed some in 2013 and will continue this year.
Here are five Cardinals that fantasy owners need to target on draft day.
5. ILB Kevin Minter
5. ILB Kevin Minter
Minter only played one defensive snap last year as a rookie, but he will move into a starting role with Daryl Washington suspended and Karlos Dansby signing with the Browns in free agency. There's IDP sleeper potential here, with Minter taking a prominent role on a very good defense.
4. QB Carson Palmer
4. QB Carson Palmer
Palmer set a career-high in passing yards (4,274) last year, and he has now topped 4,000 yards in each of the last two seasons. He needs to reduce his interception total (22 in 2013) and he'll turn 35 in December, but Palmer is worth drafting as a QB2.
3. WR Larry Fitzgerald
3. WR Larry Fitzgerald
After the worst season of his career in 2012 (71 receptions for 798 yards and four touchdowns), Fitzgerald had a modest rebound in catches (82) and yards (954) last year along with double-digit touchdowns (10) for the first time since 2009. He is clearly not the player he was and made cede some targets to Michael Floyd, but Fitzgerald is still a solid WR2 with added value in PPR leagues.
2. RB Andre Ellington
2. RB Andre Ellington
Ellington is now atop the depth chart after averaging 5.5 yards per carry and catching 39 passes in a limited role as a rookie last year. I'm not as high on him as some others are, but Ellington has a lot of potential in PPR leagues and is a viable RB2 or RB3 in all scoring formats.
1. WR Michael Floyd
1. WR Michael Floyd
Floyd improved his numbers across the board last year, topping 1,000 yards and averaging 16 yards per catch despite battling a few injuries. With further improvement likely this year, and more red zone targets (12 in 2013) surely in store, this may be the last year that Floyd will be a relative value on draft day for quite some time.