Deone Bucannon is quick to pay homage to the hard-hitting safeties that came before him.
Players like Sean Taylor, Adrian Wilson and Kam Chancellor proved defensive backs could handle the rigors of playing close to the line of scrimmage defensively -- but none of them quite changed the NFL’s thinking like Bucannon and the Cardinals have done the past two years.
Entering just his third season, Bucannon has become a force at “moneybacker,” the inside linebacker spot he transitioned to as a rookie after leaving Washington State as a strong safety.
Bucannon is listed at 6-foot-1 and was down to 208 pounds by the end of last season, but still showed he could be used in the box on a full-time basis.