Kent Somers

azcentral sports

Cardinals starting cornerbacks Patrick Peterson and Justin Bethel recently underwent surgeries and are expected to be ready when training camp opens in July, according to NFL sources.

Peterson had surgery earlier this week and might be able to participate at some point in organized team activities, which are held in May and June.

Peterson suffered a right-ankle injury against the Bengals on Nov. 23 and underwent an MRI the following week. He played in all 16 games and made the Pro Bowl as a cornerback for the fourth consecutive season.

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Bethel had surgery to repair a left-foot fracture, and he is not expected to participate in OTAs. Sources said Bethel played last season with a slight fracture, and the injury worsened this offseason.

Bethel has made three consecutive Pro Bowls for his special teams work, and the Cardinals expect him to become a starting cornerback. In December, he signed a three-year contract extension worth $15 million, including $9 million guaranteed.

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Bethel started on defense in four of the last five games and struggled in coverage.

At this point, Peterson and Bethel are the Cardinals’ two starting cornerbacks. Another defensive back, safety Tyrann Mathieu, is recovering from a torn ACL and expects to participate in training camp.

Even with Peterson and Bethel healthy, the Cardinals are thin at cornerback. They still have interest in re-signing Jerraud Powers, an unrestricted free agent who started 39 games over the past three seasons.

Powers visited the Giants a few weeks ago and met with Cardinals officials last week.

Mocking allowed

The Cardinals have their draft board set, but the team’s decision makers aren’t taking time off. They will continue to evaluate their rankings and plan to conduct at least three mock drafts before the real thing starts April 28.

“We’ll throw a crazy trade in there just to shake it up and see what’s going on,” coach Bruce Arians said.

The Cardinals have the 29th pick, so it’s not easy exploring all the scenarios that could take place before their selection.

“The thing I will tell you is that we will be prepared,” General Manager Steve Keim said. “Coach (Arians) and I have talked through scenarios of trading up, trading back, drawing a line in the sand of here’s an area where after this player, we’d be willing to go back and roll the dice to acquire more picks.”

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Back-loaded schedule

Arians doesn’t have many complaints about the Cardinals’ schedule, which was announced last week.

The Cardinals play at Buffalo in September, which means they likely will avoid a cold-weather game. And they play at Miami in December, avoiding playing there when it’s hot and humid.

Three of the first four games are at home and the off week comes right at the season’s midway point.

“I’m not crazy about five of the last seven being on the road,” Arians said. “I think that’s tough. We’re going to have to make hay early in the schedule with all those home games.”

No shot at Norman

The Cardinals won’t be cornerback Josh Norman’s next employer. The Panthers lifted the franchise tag on Norman after the two sides made no progress on a long-term deal. That makes Norman an unrestricted free agent.

The Cardinals are paying one cornerback, Peterson, an average of $14 million a year, so there is no way they are going to pay another one that much money.