The Arizona Cardinals' contract agreement with Oakland Raiders unrestricted free agent Matt Shaughnessy adds quality depth to the team's line rotation, presumably behind Calais Campbell in particular.
Shaughnessy, 26, played about two-thirds of the defensive snaps for the Raiders last season. He was a third-round choice (71st overall) from Wisconsin in 2009. A shoulder injury sidelined him for much of the 2011 season after Shaughnessy collected a career-high seven sacks in 2010.
As Kent Somers noted, Raiders defensive lineman Richard Seymour pointed to Shaughnessy's injury as the No. 1 reason Oakland's defense faltered in 2011.
"I think he's the best (end) in the NFL against the run," Seymour said at the time, according to the San Jose Mercury News. "It was a big blow for us when he went down. It messed up our rotation a lot. Guys that weren't normally in there were trying to understand what we were trying to do."
The chart ranks the Cardinals' defensive linemen from 2012 by snaps played. I've added Shaughnessy to the list for reference.
Update: Bill Williamson's post on the AFC West blog notes, in part, "Shaughnessy had potential and played well for Oakland, but he did not play well last season and was replaced by journeyman Andre Carter late in the season."
