The Cardinals have signed 32-year old punter Dave Zastudil to compete with Ben Graham for the starting job in 2011.  Zastudil didn’t play at all last year due to a knee injury.  He has played in 113 games in his first 8 years in the NFL and he has punted the ball 581 times for 24,825 yards (42.7 avg).  Zastudil has 59 touchbacks (10.2%) and he has pinned the opposition inside their own 20-yard line 179 times (30.8%).  Zastudil will have a good shot of bumping Graham out of a job, if he looks good the next couple of weeks.

UPDATE:  (9/3/2011) – Dave Zastudil has won the starting punter job for the Cardinals in 2011.

The Cardinals have signed 28-year old QB Brodie Croyle.  Croyle played in 2 games (1 start) for the Chiefs last year and he completed 8 of 19 passes (42.1%) for 38 yards with 0 TD passes and 1 INT (27.7 QB Rating).  He  has played in 18 games (10 starts) in his first five years in the NFL and he has completed 181 of 319 passes (56.7%) for 1,669 yards with 8 TD passes and 9 INTs (67.8 QB Rating).  Croyle has also carried the ball 10 times for 15 yards (1.5 ypc) in his NFL career.  Croyle is 0-10 as a starting QB in the NFL.  Croyle will battle Richard Bartel for the #3 QB job in 2011.  That is because Max Hall has a separated left shoulder and he could be placed on I.R. or simply let go.

UPDATE:  (9/3/2011) – The Cardinals have released Brodie Croyle.

The Cardinals will be without rookie RB Ryan Williams for the rest of the 2011 season due to a ruptured right patellar tendon.  This really hurts the depth at RB as the Cardinals dealt Tim Hightower to the Redskins just a couple of weeks ago.  The Cardinals will be depending on Beanie Wells to carry the load in the running game.  He is very injury prone, so LaRod Stephens-Howling could get his big chance to show what he can do in 2011.  At the very least, Stephens-Howling will be the Cardinals’ #2 back in 2011.  Williams’ injury was a huge blow to the Cardinals’ offense.

The Cardinals have lost 26-year old CB Michael Adams indefinately after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery earlier today.  He played in all 16 games for the Cardinals last year and he had 52 tackles, 3 tackles for a loss, 1 fumble recovery, 2 interceptions and 7 passes defensed.  Adams is a solid corner and the Cardinals hope that he returns soon because they are going to use him a lot in 2011.

The Cardinals have signed 28-year old safety Matt Ware.  Ware played in 14 games for the Cardinals last year and he only had 6 tackles.  He has now played in 67 games in his first five years with the Cardinals and he has 81 tackles, 3 passes defensed, 2 forced fumbles and 1 fumble recovery.  With the injuries mounting in the Cardinals’ secondary, it made perfect sense for them to bring a guy back in Ware who already knows the system.

UPDATE:  (9/3/2011) – The Cardinals have released Matt Ware.

The Cardinals have dealt 25-year old RB Tim Hightower to the Redskins for 35-year old DE Vonnie Holliday and a conditional late round draft choice.  Hightower played in 16 games (13 starts) for the Cardinals last year and he carried the ball 153 times for 736 yards (4.8 ypc) with 5 TD runs.  He also caught 21 passes for 136 yards (6.5 avg) last season.  Hightower played in 48 games (36 starts) in his three years with the Cardinals and he carried the ball 439 times for 1,733 yards (3.9 ypc) with 23 TD runs.  He also caught 118 passes for 801 yards (6.8 avg) with the Cardinals.  Beanie Wells and Ryan Williams will handle the running game for the Cardinals in 2011 and beyond.

35-year old DE Vonnie Holliday will be a backup for the Cardinals.  He played in 15 games for the Redskins last year and he had 29 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 2.5 sacks and he defensed 3 passes.  Holliday has now played in 182 games in his first 13 years in the NFL and he has 568 tackles, 34 tackles for a loss, 62.5 sacks, 9 forced fumbles, 11 fumble recoveries and 2 interceptions. 

The Cardinals must have really wanted to ditch Hightower because they didn’t get much back for him.

The Cardinals have re-signed 28-year old guard Deuce Lutui.  Lutui actually signed a 2-year deal with the Bengals but it was nullified when he failed his physical.  That didn’t stop the Cardinals from signing him back up though.  Lutui played in 16 games (all starts) for the Cardinals last year.  He has now played in 78 games (72 starts) in his first five years with the Cardinals.  This was a good move for the Cardinals because Lutui is still a pretty solid offensive lineman.

The Cardinals have signed 31-year TE Todd Heap to a 2-year deal.  Heap played in 13 games (13 starts) for the Ravens last year and he caught 40 passes for 599 yards (15.0 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  Heap has now played in 133 games (128 starts) in his first 10 years in the NFL and he caught 467 passes for 5,492 yards (11.8 avg) with 41 TD grabs.  Heap also has carried the ball 8 times for 61 yards (7.6 ypc) in his career so far.  Heap has made it to two Pro Bowls in his career.  Todd Heap has an outstanding set of hands and the Cardinals have not had a legit TE in a long time.  I look for Heap to have a great year or two for the Cardinals.  I love this signing for them.

The Cardinals have signed 26-year old cornerback Richard Marshall.  Marshall played in all 16 games for the Panthers last year and he had 88 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 1 sack, 1 fumble recovery, 1 fumble recovery, 7 passes defensed and 3 interceptions.  Marshall has played in 80 games in his first five years in the NFL and he has 423 tackles, 15 tackles for a loss, 5 sacks, 7  fumble recoveries, 3 forced fumbles, 44 passes defensed and 14 interceptions (2 returned for TDs).  Marshall will likely step right into Dominque Rodgers-Cromartie’s old starting job at corner.  This was a good signing for the Cardinals.

The Cardinals have signed 32-year old guard Floyd “Pork Chop” Womack.  Womack played in 16 games (15 starts) for the Browns last year.  He has now played in 119 games (71 starts) in his first 10 years in the NFL.  Womack could win a starting job at guard in training camp as he is still a pretty good football player.  This was a good signing for the Cardinals, who need to protect Kevin Kolb well.

UPDATE:  (9/3/2011) – The Cardinals have placed Floyd Womack on Injured Reserve due to a back injury.