On September 27th, 2015 -Arizona will induct a new player into the Cardinal’s Ring of Honor. This is a big deal in the desert, considering only 12 players have made it in the club’s 127 years of existence.
The player being honored is Adrian Wilson, who played with the Cardinals from 2001 through 2012. Wilson (or “A.W.”), set multiple records with in franchise, the NFL, and made five Pro Bowl appearances with Arizona. Be it a sack, a sack and fumble recovery, an interception, or the amazingly timed devastating hits, A.W. could change the game’s direction at any moment.
You hear the term “Hybrid” often these days. Car companies absolutely love the word, biologists and farmers use it to define a “cross breed” in the plant world, and it can also be used to describe different types of energy. I first learned the term while watching the Cardinals defense play, trying to spot where Adrian Wilson was lining up became part of the fun.
But for for this article, I think it’s best we use the energy definition for the word when describing this Arizona safety.
Hybrid: a stand-alone power system that operates independently of a larger power grid network (thank you wiki).
Adrian Wilson was a true defensive catalyst. Some of today’s safeties are still labeled as heavy hitters but no one laid the wood or got the crowd going like #24. He was just a mean, mean man on the field, but he could also cover too. His accomplishments in Arizona still stand the test of time.
-A.W. still holds the Arizona record for most passes defensed. (95)
-A.W. also the Cardinal record for most forced fumbles. (15)
-A.W. is the only Cardinal to reach the 25/25 club (6th player in NFL history), with 25 sacks and 25 interceptions.
-A.W. shares the longest interception returned for a touch down as well, going for 99 yards (tied with Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie)
-Adrian Wilson still holds the NFL record for most sacks in a season by a defensive back, going for 8 in 2005.
12 years, 27 interceptions, 25.5 sacks, 508 interception return yards, and 4 touch downs. This is why he will forever be loved in the Grand Canyon State. The third round draft pick basically spent his entire career in Arizona, although he was (technically) a Patriot and a Bear towards the end. Now he will forever be a Cardinal, he will forever stand with the other greats that have done so much for this organization. A fitting end for one of the best draft picks this club has ever had, A.W. is a true Cardinal legend.
Images By: Mike Yduarte
