PFF: Cardinals’ offensive line ranked near the bottom of the NFL

The Arizona Cardinals’ offensive line will see a bit of a shuffle with Paris Johnson Jr. moving to left tackle and the signing of Jonah Williams this offseason.

Pro Football Focus’ Zoltán Buday has the Arizona Cardinals o-line 26th out of the 32 NFL teams despite the moves the team made this offseason.

The Cardinals’ offensive line is without any truly weak links but also lacks above-average players.

Moving from right side to left tackle, Paris Johnson Jr. is expected to live up to his potential in his second season after ranking just 57th in PFF overall grade among offensive tackles as a rookie in 2023. Arizona also signed Evan Brown and Jonah Williams in free agency to further stabilize the offensive line.

How does the Cardinals’ offensive line looks going into the season?

The team’s o-line seems to be set at the tackle positions with Johnson at left side of the line and Williams taking the right side. Williams takes over after the organization moved on from longtime tackle D.J. Humphries following his injury last year and release this offseason.

The Cardinals do have a bit of depth behind Williams, with veteran tackle Kelvin Beachum returning, who will be playing his fifth season with the team.

The starting center position looks to be fifth-year pro Hjalte Froholdt’s job to lose, although the Cardinals signed Evan Brown for depth behind Froholdt.

At right guard, Will Hernandez returns to the starting role, who will be entering the final year of his two-year contract.

Left guard seems to be the biggest question mark entering the season. The candidates for the position include Brown, rookie Isaiah Adams, Elijah Wilkinson and Jon Gaines II.

Offensive coordinator Drew Petzing thinks the team made great progress to finish last season and sees that progress carrying over into 2024.

“I thought they made some great strides in terms of execution and communication,” Petzing said in a June 27 press conference. “I really like where we are at and I think training camp is going to be a big part to take another step as we get toward the season.”