Early Fantasy Football Rankings: Cardinals Players
D/ST Arizona Cardinals: Round 15, Pick 2 (142nd overall)
January 23, 2015; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Team Carter cornerback Patrick Peterson of the Arizona Cardinals (21), defensive end Calais Campbell of the Arizona Cardinals (93), cornerback Antonio Cromartie of the Arizona Cardinals (31), and special teams Justin Bethel of the Arizona Cardinals (28) during photo day at The Arizona Biltmore. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
I am a key believer in taking defenses late in fantasy football drafts because the drop-off from one D/ST to another D/ST is not as big as the middle round wide receiver/running back picks you could be making that ends up big in value (2014 examples: Mark Ingram, Justin Forsett, and Jeremy Hill).
Arizona’s D/ST finished 12th among D/ST last year, but the defense should definitely rank higher than that this year with Patrick Peterson, Calais Campbell, and Tyrann Mathieu leading the charge.
If people in your fantasy league start taking D/ST in the middle rounds of the draft, let them. There will still be a serviceable D/ST sitting there for you in the later rounds while you have an additional RB or WR on your roster.