Tyvon Branch is one of the underrated safeties in football. After spending a season in Kansas City recovering his original form, he left in free agency and quickly found a new home as the safety-loving Arizona Cardinals swiftly scooped him up.
Safety Tyvon Branch is finalizing a 2-yr deal with Arizona. Deal expected to get done shortly
— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) March 9, 2016
Here is a rundown of who Arizona is getting as a player and what he offers their defense.
"“For a time he was one of the better strong safeties in the game, a constance presence around the line of scrimmage. At one point he averaged over 100 tackles and is a capable blitzer (nine career sacks). However, health problems derailed his final years in Oakland. Undaunted, the Chiefs scooped him up last season and he became a welcome part of their safety rotation. Even in limited duty he seemed to regain his old form, playing well around the line of scrimmage. He also suffered no notable injuries. At age 29 he still has some good years left provided a team is willing to take the risk.”"
Bruce Arians and his staff are masters and finding ways to make good football players fit in their system. It shouldn’t be a huge stretch to think that they can find a place in their system where Branch can have success, especially given his experience and productivity.
GRADE: B+
With it being a two-year deal, chances are the money is nothing for the Cardinals to sweat about. Branch is simply a quality veteran signing that should help them in the short-term as they hope to get Tyrann Mathieu back completely healthy.