Evolution of the Cardinals' Pundits' Brainwashing Agenda: the latest example
Credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn ImagesBy Walter Mitchell
March 2025
"Cardinals desperately need to sign one of the top free agent WRs to play opposite Marv."
"Michael Wilson would not start for any other NFL team."
"Other than Marv, Cardinals have worst WR room in the NFL."
"Petzing's passing offense is worst in NFL."
"Michael Wilson is at best a WR3."
"Can't blame Kyler when the WRs can't get open."
June 2026
"Cardinals have no QB."
"Jacoby Brissett's contract holdout is an embarrassment after an 1-11 season for a career backup QB."
"Carson Beck is on track to start game one."
"Petzing ruined this offense."
"Cardinals #1 priority is to sign Michael Wilson to a multi-year extension right now."
"Cardinals had better sign Michael Wilson now to save money down the road."
"Christian Watson's 4-year $110.5M contract sets a bar for Michael Wilson's."
"Better act fast with the WR salaries skyrocketing."
The Ironies
1. Viewing Michael Wilson as a WR3 at best a year ago to urging Cardinals to pay him Christian Watson money a year after one superb breakout season.
2. Cardinals' fans have only seen Michael Wilson thrive with one QB, Jacoby Brissett, and the pundits act as if Wilson could thrive with any other QB. Yet. the pundits maintain, "the Cardinals have no QB." They shout, sign Wilson asap and get rid of Jacoby asap. Is there any understanding of what it takes reps-wise, film-study-wise and game prep-wise for a QB and WR to develop the kind of electric chemistry Jacoby developed with Michael Wilson?
3. Career stats to date:
Christian Watson: 133 catches for 2,264 yards, 17.0 average, 20 TDs, 12 rushes for 117 yards, 7.3 average
Michael Wilson: 163 catches for 2,119 yards, 13.0 average, 14 TDs, 1 rush for 7 yards, 7.0 average
4. "Better save money in the long run by signing him now" is the exact same argument the pundits made in urging the Cardinals to sign Kyler Murray to his $230.5M extension, when the ironic fact is the Cardinals are paying $43.7M to Kyler Murray on their 2026 salary cap while Kyler is playing in Minnesota on the veteran minimum.
5. Which part of giving "too much too soon" do the pundits not understand?
6. Does this also mean that this time next year, the same pundits will want the Cardinals to extend Marvin Harrison Jr. to an extension (with 2 years remaining on his rookie contract) in the neighborhood of $30M a year?
Commentary
We at the Red Rain Podcast watched Michael Wilson very closely during training camp last year and were easily able to conclude that he was by far the best route runner and most difficult WR to cover. We pointed to him as the most likely breakout player on the offense for 2025.
We had not forgotten how impressed we were with Michael Wilson's level of play at the 2023 Senior Bowl, which drew raves from execs like Jim Nagy, GMs, coaches and scouts as you can watch here:
Teased it last night.
Our top sleeper at any position for 2023 #NFLDraft is Stanford’s Michael Wilson.
Term “sleeper” is overused but it applies to Wilson, who we haven’t seen in any Top-10 WR rankings.
Here’s our case for why Wilson will be this year’s biggest steal.
Too Much Too Soon
That said, as with the case of Paris Johnson Jr., it would be "too much too soon" to pay Michael Wilson like one of the top WRs in the NFL. People don't realize what a burden an inflated contract can be for players now having the extreme pressure live up to the kind of lofty expectations that come with lucrative contracts.
In Paris Johnson Jr.'s case, the Cardinals have the luxury of securing two more seasons with him by virtue of the 5th year option they decided to pick on him. With Michael Wilson, the Cardinals have the safety nets of the franchise or transition tags.
As we concluded this week on Red Rain Podcast 215, the best way to treat Michael Wilson's future with the team is to see how well he plays this season and, if he continues to play like a WR1, then try to sign him to a well-deserved extension in December.
Cattle Call
When fans do not do their own research on players, they are all the more apt and eager to believe in whatever the pundits are telling them. These types of fans are like cattle being led into the barn.
Why is this a major problem?
Because the Cardinals' owner/team president listens very intently to the pundits and their hordes of followers to the point of trying to give them everything they want, thinking that such cooperation will increase ticket sales. The ultimate irony is that the majority of the pundits' followers have no intention whatsoever of buying season tickets. So, this bending over backwards by Bidwill to satisfy the hordes of brainwashed fans predictably winds up being a lose-lose scenario.
Red Rain Question of the Day
What do Michael Bidwill and the brainwashed fans have in common?
What do Michael Bidwill and the brainwashed fans have in common?
ReplyDelete--Disconnect of facts and reality - living in a fantasy knee jerk reaction society of their 'pundits' design and failure to see the forrest for the trees. Lack of independent thought and analysis.
This!
DeleteThanks to the tv and streaming contracts, the 31 other franchises pumping up the value of this pathetic franchise by billions, and the popularity of the sport, JR is just treating this like day trading with players and coaches etc, while shopping for planes and designing his new facility that will be paid for by nothing this terrible owner has earned or worked for. This franchise should be dissolved by the nfl and give the market to the Cowboys who owned AZ long before the carpetbagger Bidwill moved here. the nfl should give UT a new franchise with that guy who stole the coyotes and owns the Jazz, he seems to want to win and be successful.
ReplyDeleteWho's gonna show up to mandatory camp? Who's not?
ReplyDeleteWhat do Michael Bidwill and the brainwashed fans have in common?
ReplyDeleteMB has all the facts to make educated decisions, the fans don't so if MB is basing his decision making on this team's majority fan bases opinions, he's not a real football fan IMO. He's just a silver spoon kid who inherited a team in a sport that he probably would have no interest in if he hadn't been born into it. If your hearts not in it and you don't truly love the game, you are going to treat it as one of the best fail proof business opportunities out there, which is exactly the way MB treats this team. I would bet money that at least 90% of Cardinal fans want MB to sell this team or at least the majority ownership of this team to someone who truly loves the game and wants to field a winner even if that negatively affects his profits at the start. Since I seriously doubt MB will ever sell this money cow of a team, this is what I think he needs to do. Spend the money on a quality GM and give him full reign to hire and sign the players he needs to hire and sign to build a contender. As long as MB keeps meddling in this team like a rich kid playing with one of his toys, this team will continue to be the laughingstock of the NFL.
What do Michael Bidwill and the brainwashed fans have in common?
ReplyDeleteThey don't know what well run organizations look like.
Fans get the football they deserve. Look at Philly fans-savvy, experienced demanding to a fault, expect to win every game every season. Philly ownership aggressive hires the best football minds expects results and they win deep in the playoffs consistently.
ReplyDeleteLook at Cards fans and ownership-exactly the opposite of Philly.
Since the greater Phoenix area attracts so many "snowbirds" and winter vacationers who go to Cardinal games, Bidwill can continue to treat this team like the fail proof cash cow it is. The Eagles stadium is one of the most intimidating and loud environments for opposing teams in the entire NFL. State Farm is the opposite.
Delete