Zach Allen, Matt Burke mystery and spending smart

This morning I was reading this excellent piece from Brooks Kubena on our new DC. I am nowhere near enough of an expert to have any idea if he will be a good DC but like a lot of other people I have faith in DeMeco. The piece does confirm what was said at the time, Burke is a thoroughly interesting dude.

However one thing that got me thinking was a potential free agent that Burke's appointment could lead to, Zach Allen. Like some Texans fans I found myself watching a lot of Cardinals football over the past few years to see JJ and DHop.

Now I'm not saying that Allen is going to be like Payne or Hargrave in terms of an interior force but I just can't see Nick spending that much money on a player in FA. I think Allen could be a really sneaky addition like Nelson or Collins for us. He's solid against both the pass and the run and did make some very flashy plays.

Allen had a career year in Burke's sole year in charge of the DL. Is that because of Burke or the fact that it was a contract year? We'll never know. But JJ did have one of the best years of his recent career so there's that. Although again, is that staying fit or Burke? We don't know.

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But Allen feels like a player on the rise, it took him a while to get going (Cardinals development of their own picks is probably worse than ours) and he feels like the sort of player that as long as you don't overpay could come in, grow with DeMeco and Burke and this young defence.

I know a lot of fans want some big splashes but I just don't see that happening, particularly this year. Next year seems like the year when we hopefully have an established franchise QB and more cap room. This year seems like the year for some smart signings to bolster a pretty thread-bare roster and I think Allen could fit the bill perfectly.