Green deserves a nod for Cards' success
January 17
Arizona Republic columnist Paola Boivin
"For all the well-deserved gushing directed at Ken Whisenhunt this week, Dennis Green merits at least a few atta-boys. It was the former coach's knack for evaluating talent that shaped the Cardinals' 2004 NFL draft class, a group that is the core of this season's rags-to-riches success story.
Green was never the right fit here. He assembled a mismatched coaching staff and never gave management reason enough to be patient. But after his hiring in January 2004, he steered the team toward drafting a high-impact group. Four of the first five picks will start in Sunday's NFC title game against Philadelphia.
"Denny Green's got a lot to do with this because you've got to know how to draft," defensive end Darnell Dockett said. "I think that (class) kick-started the whole thing and helped the organization turn it around."
The four - Dockett, wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, linebacker Karlos Dansby and defensive end Antonio Smith - have a combined four Pro Bowl invitations. Fitzgerald is considered by some the best receiver in the league and Smith was an overlooked fifth-round pick who started his career here on the practice squad.
The league's 2004 class overall was a strong group. It gave us Eli Manning, Philip Rivers, Ben Roethlisberger and Steven Jackson. Many teams still managed to screw it up. Green Bay took cornerback Ahmad Carroll in the first round and he was released two seasons later. And the typically draft-astute Eagles? Three seasons later, only two players from that 10-man class remained on the roster.
The Cardinals, meanwhile, thrived. After San Diego took Eli Manning with the top pick and subsequently traded him to the Giants, Oakland went with tackle Robert Gallery. That gave the Cardinals the opportunity toPittsburgh's Fitzgerald, who was a ball boy for Green's Minnesota Vikings and a family friend of the new coach.
Fitzgerald was widely respected but some still questioned how much Green's relationship with the player clouded his vision. None, it turned out, evidenced by the big-play skills Fitzgerald has demonstrated since arriving in Arizona.
"For me, when I saw they took Larry, I knew we were going to be a great class," Smith said. "He was like Mr. Everything."
The Cardinals went with Auburn linebacker Dansby in the second round and Florida State defensive lineman Dockett in the third.
"Honestly, there wasn't a lot of debate (in the war room) about these guys," Cardinals General Manager Rod Graves said. "We had given all of them first-round grades and were thrilled when they slipped to the second and third rounds."
Green's next decision has benefited this season's Cardinals. He let those inexperienced picks play.
"He told us, 'Y'all gonna be my guys. I want you to go out and play,' " Dockett said. "Even though we made mistakes as rookies, he kept us in games, even in bad situations where we're like, 'You could let a veteran come in, dude,' and he still kept us in gam
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