Four Free Agents Cardinals Must Bring Back

You can't keep everyone, but the Arizona Cardinals should look to retain these four free agents.

The saying goes that the NFL is a business and you can't re-sign everybody and that is no different for the Arizona Cardinals than it is for any other team in the league. Unfortunately for them, they have 30 pending free agents and not a ton of cap space to operate with which to bring guys back.

There aren't too many "must bring back" guys hitting free agency, but the Cardinals do have a handful of players they should absolutely prioritize in returning for 2023. We have four players who stand out to me the most as players the Cardinals should work on retaining for at least one more season.

Let's start with the most obvious of the bunch.

Zach Allen

The Cardinals would like to hold on to one of their better defenders from an abysmal 2022 season. Allen has indeed developed well in his first four seasons in the pros and turned in his finest season with 47 tackles and a career-best 5.5 sacks. Allen has amassed 9.5 sacks over the last two seasons and it looks as though his best days are ahead of him.

The Cardinals are facing a lot of retooling throughout the roster, but the front seven of the defense will be losing a lot of faces including future Hall of Famer J.J. Watt. The Cardinals can ill afford to lose Allen. 

When you consider that Allen may be the team's best pending free agent and also how big the void would be if he left, Allen becomes a priority for the Cardinals to retain.

Michael Dogbe

Photo: Alex Weiner, Sports Illustrated

I feel as though casual fans aren't aware of Dogbe and that's a shame. The former seventh-round pick has found a niche with the Cardinals and stuck with the team all the way through his rookie deal. That is rare for such a late draft pick to do so. This is why the Cardinals should look to retain him.

Similar to Allen, Dogbe plays an important role on the defensive line, and losing him would continue to set the team back. Dogbe isn't the same caliber player as Allen, but he remains a player that should be prioritized. 

Byron Murphy

Murphy was playing some great football in 2022 before injuries limited him to just nine games. Prior to that, Murphy had gone toe-to-toe with the likes of wide receivers like Cooper Kupp and A.J. Brown. Could Murphy finally be on the verge of something special?

The Cardinals haven't had the luxury of top-tier cornerback play for a few years now and it would hurt to let Murphy walk if he truly is entering his prime. The problem is will he be the same after injury or even was it all just a flash in the pan?

Either way, if the Cardinals can get Murphy back on a one-year deal then that would be ideal. If not, that will be tough for them to watch him go and succeed elsewhere.

Will Hernandez

I am of the belief that Hernandez, while not elite, is more than a serviceable offensive lineman. Newsflash - the Cardinals need all the quality offensive linemen they can get their hands on.

Hernandez felt like one of the steadier offensive linemen for the Cardinals in a 2022 season that saw a countless number of players take snaps. With very little continuity coming back for 2023, Hernandez is a cheap, veteran option that the Cardinals would be wise to explore.

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