2013 arizona cardinals Fantasy Preview
What a wasteland. The Cardinals didn't have a single offensive skill position player finish in the top 25 in fantasy points last season. Not one. Things were so bad that even Larry Fitzgerald was rendered a curtain-jerker by the end of the season. Seriously, Brian Hartline had more fantasy points. Brian Hartline! Well, that was thanks in no small part to one huge game against the Cardinals. But still. The Cardinals quarterbacks played awful as a whole, and Fitzgerald paid for it in the stat sheets. He wasn't even the highest-scoring wideout on his team - that went to Andre Roberts. Still, several moves this offseason have Fitzgerald's value back on the rise. In fact, he is certain to be the first member of this roster to be taken in all drafts - he's also likely to be the only Cardinal to come off the board in one of the first five rounds in standard leagues.
11
Larry
Fitzgerald
WR - cardinals
The big move was the acquisition of Drew Stanton! Just kidding - the team also got Carson Palmer, which is going to be huge for Fitzgerald. Defensive tackle Calais Campbell said you can't measure how important it is to have a steady quarterback. He even went so far as to compare it to his rookie season when Kurt Warner took over as the team's starting quarterback. The Cardinals also added veteran running back Rashard Mendenhall, who is considered the favorite to start in a crowded backfield that also added rookies Stepfan Taylor and Andre Ellington. If Mendenhall can avoid injuries, he could become a decent flex starter. Arizona also added some offensive line help in the draft, grabbing OG Jonathan Cooper.
As I mentioned earlier, Roberts had more fantasy points than Fitzgerald last year. Don't expect a repeat of that, but Roberts could have some fantasy value. As could Michael Floyd, who didn't get a chance to develop last year because of the quarterback situation. Seriously, if Fitz struggled with those guys, what chance did Floyd have? The real question is who becomes the team's starting running back. Ryan Williams will no doubt push Mendenhall for the role and could be a sleeper in a best-case scenario.
| POS | FIRST | SECOND | THIRD | OTHER |
| QB | Carson Palmer | Drew Stanton | Ryan Lindley | Caleb TerBush |
| RB | Rashard Mendenhall | Ryan Williams | Stepfan Taylor | Andre Ellington |
| WR | Larry Fitzgerald | Michael Floyd | Andre Roberts | Ryan Swope |
| TE | Rob Housler | Jim Dray | D.C. Jefferson | Kyle Auffray |
| K | Jay Feely | - | - | - |
( ) Projected Round
| # | Name | Pos. Rank |
| 1 | Larry Fitzgerald | 8 |
| 2 | Rashard Mendenhall | 31 |
| 3 | Carson Palmer | 19 |
| 4 | Ryan Williams | 51 |
| 5 | Michael Floyd | 49 |
Photo Gallery
Top 30 Fantasy PlayersLarry Fitzgerald is poised to return to his status as an elite fantasy WR. See where he lands among the top 30 fantasy players for 2013. View
