Forever in our hearts: A minute ago, Arizona Cardinals QB Kyler Murray died in a plane crash.

In his first year as the Cardinals defensive coordinator, Nick Rallis oversaw one of the worst units in the 2023 season. The defense ranked second to last in points per game (26.8) and percentage of drives the opposing offense scored (44.0%).

Heading into his second year, the defense will have to significantly improve to get the Cardinals on track to compete for a playoff spot.

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For the offseason, the Cardinals invested a lot in improving the defense in free agency. They picked up cornerback Sean Murphy-Bunting, linebacker Mack Wilson Sr., and defensive tackles Justin Jones and Bilal Nichols. They also invested three of their top six picks in the 2024 NFL Draft on defense, with defensive lineman Darius Robinson, then cornerbacks Max Melton and Elijah Jones.

“I love what [general manager] Monti [Ossenfort] was able to do over the course of the offseason and improve the depth and competitiveness at each position,” said Rallis, video courtesy of the Arizona Cardinals’ YouTube channel.

All these moves were designed to boost a defense that gave up the most rushing yards (2,434) in the NFL last season. Their inability to stop the run put them in a vulnerable spot on third downs, where they had the highest conversion rate allowed at 47.8%. That meant the opposing offenses could extend drives that ended in points.

That adds pressure to an offense that missed their starting quarterback for the first nine weeks and put them in a hole for much of the season.

For Year 2, Rallis describes the identity of his defense as “Motor and Violence”. He wants to see them win the takeaway battle and limit the explosive plays. With the limited amount of contact in the offseason, it can be difficult to practice those two elements.

“We do practice motor, and we have our designations on the practice field for how we can measure that, and what’s the expectation and what’s not acceptable,” said Rallis. “We coach that up. Violence is something you have to bring on game day. We have ways we can measure the physicality of our play, but it’s that you can’t practice. You have to show up game day with that mentality.”

Asked if motor leads to violence, the Cardinals’ defensive coordinator emphatically answered “Absolutely”, stating that they go hand-in-hand and good things happen when that’s around the ball.

With the additions of Murphy-Bunting, Melton, and Jones to the cornerback room, Rallis is expecting more competition at the position. Second-year corners Garrett Williams and Kei’Trel Clark started six and seven games respectively as rookies last season. Murphy-Bunting has some versatility, with experience playing in the slot from his time with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, so there can be some creative ways to get the best players on the field.

“It’s highly competitive and it’s up for grabs for guys to go take and earn spots, which is a great problem to have. I’m excited, it’s going to be a really good competition. I want to see guys take strides during training camp and I want there to be tough decisions on who’s going to earn certain roles.”

With a stronger cornerback room in 2024, once their younger players are battle-tested, the hope is the Cardinals’ defense also provides more resistance in the passing game. While they weren’t necessarily tested as much due to the score and success of the opposing offense on the ground, the secondary has some talented players to work with.

Improving the defense will be one of the four major keys to a successful 2024 season