RELATED: OT MAX IHEANCHOR INTERVIEW<\/a><\/p>\nWhat about the other defensive tackles? Dalvin Tomlinson is making bank, but his production numbers are way off for the money he cashes each week. Backups include P.J. Mustipher, L.J. Collier, and Zachary Carter.<\/p>\n
All of these guys have their own methods and abilities. But do they strike fear into opposing quarterbacks? Do they provide adequate pass-rushing and run-stopping abilities?<\/p>\n
Since Monti Ossenfort was hired as the Cardinals\u2019 GM, he has attempted to fill that defensive tackle role with good results. But Campbell hasn\u2019t been re-signed. Tomlinson has one year remaining on his contract, but the Cleveland Browns released him with a year left on his contract, so it can be done.<\/p>\n
The Senior Bowl had one superb defensive tackle that the Cardinals should seriously take a good look at in the second round. Pair him with Nolen and look for that 1-2 power punch.<\/p>\n
That can be solved in this year\u2019s NFL draft by selecting DT Caleb Banks out of Florida.<\/p>\n
Banks was at the Senior Bowl this year and was spectacular. He stood out as the lone defensive tackle all during practice week. He was the only defensive lineman that the best offensive line prospects could not block in the 1-on-1 drills.<\/p>\n
Banks is a very big man and a complete bully. He knows how to use his huge body to his advantage. His sheer size absolutely jumps out immediately. He has great first-step quickness, which is surprising for a man his size. Uncanny knack of reading the backfield and then adjusting his route with 35\u201d arms.<\/p>\n
Arizona owns the #34 pick, which is the second slot in Round 2. If Banks is still sitting there at 34, the Cardinals should run to the podium.<\/p>\n
Revenge of the Birds staff writer Barry Shuck was at the Senior Bowl last week and spoke to Banks during the practice week.<\/p>\n
DT Caleb Banks (6\u2019-6\u201d, 330 pounds)<\/p>\n
——————————————————————————————-<\/p>\n
Shuck: You get double-teamed quite a bit. How do you attack that?<\/p>\n
Banks: I try to be as quick as I can so I can engage the first guy, and the second guy can\u2019t get over to me in time, so I am just dealing with the guard or center. Then I try to run right through it.<\/p>\n
Shuck: What are you saying about the player you are, and what an NFL team should expect if they draft you? <\/p>\n
Banks: That I am a hard-working player who will give it my all. I drive every single down. When you play on the inside, contact gets made much quicker than it does at defensive end. My arm length advantage is one of my greatest assets. I have the ability to peek, which is an important element of playing defensive line. It pairs well with the stack-and-shed ability.<\/p>\n
Shuck: What are your strengths as a pass rusher?<\/p>\n
Banks: I feel like I have the God-given talent to be able to go out there and dominate. I\u2019ve been developing my game in all types of ways to be productive. I am a high motor player.<\/p>\n
Shuck: You had the opportunity last year to come out and apply for the NFL draft. Why did you stay at Florida one more year?<\/p>\n
Banks: I wanted to come back and play with my guys. I wanted to be the first male in my family to graduate from college. I felt that was very important. And I think we had a really good team and had a chance to win the SEC and have a chance at a National Championship. I thought it was going to be a good year for us. And of course, have a higher draft stock for the NFL. All that stuff has intrigued me.<\/p>\n
Shuck: What do you have to work on the most?<\/p>\n
Banks: My run game will be the biggest thing to work on this year. My pad level needs to be tweaked a bit. There\u2019s always room for improvement. I\u2019m ready to ball.<\/p>\n
Shuck: Do you have a favorite power move?<\/p>\n
Banks: I like the bullrush. I like to see who can stop me once I get rolling full speed. Once I get control of the guy, it\u2019s over. That\u2019s when the double teams start to come out, because they learn early that one guy can\u2019t control me. I come into each game disciplined.<\/p>\n
Shuck: You played your home games at Griffin Stadium on the Florida campus. In a home game, what is it like playing at \u201cthe Swamp\u201d?<\/p>\n
Banks: First of all, it\u2019s crazy even for us as the home team. It\u2019s probably like the biggest crazy environment I\u2019ve ever played. I love our fans. I feel like the Swamp is the best place to play at night. They bring it any time. I wouldn\u2019t want to be a visiting team and have to play there. It\u2019s amazing.<\/p>\n
Shuck: After the third quarter is over, they play that song \u201cWon\u2019t Back Down\u201d at home games. How does that feel?<\/p>\n
Banks: That is amazing. I look up every time into the sky and thank God that we\u2019re in the position that we\u2019re in, in a beautiful place around amazing people. I sing along with it all the time.<\/p>\n
play a balanced game. I don\u2019t want to be a one-dimensional guy. I want to be a guy who can play all four downs. I want them to know I am a great locker room guy. Someone who is always willing to learn and soak up information from the vets. Somebody who\u2019s going to improve the room, whether that\u2019s on the field or off the field, spiritually or mentally. Somebody who is ready to work with boots on the ground, ready to go.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Arizona Cardinals had plenty of defensive tackles on the roster last season. Besides the ageless Calais Campbell,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":731973,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2078],"tags":[375,390,2757,2604,1327,7,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-731972","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arizona-cardinals","8":"tag-arizona","9":"tag-arizona-cardinals","10":"tag-arizona-cardinals-draft","11":"tag-arizonacardinals","12":"tag-cardinals","13":"tag-football","14":"tag-nfl"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116020099597561357","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/731972","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=731972"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/731972\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/731973"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=731972"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=731972"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=731972"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}