When the Arizona Cardinals selected offensive lineman Joshua Miles in the seventh round of the draft, it looked like he would be a longshot to make the team. Coming out of a small school and joining a team that added multiple veterans in the offseason, the practice squad looked like the best-case scenario.
Now he is moving up the depth chart and has impressed his coaches.
Last Thursday in the team’s 33-26 loss to the Oakland Raiders, he played left tackle with the second-team offense. On Saturday, with D.J. Humphries sitting out practice, he worked with the first-team offense at left tackle.
Head coach Kliff Kingsbury commented on Thursday after the game about how athletic Miles is, how he works hard and how he is a “conscientious young man.”
“He’s gotten better through the spring and I think Coach (Sean) Kugler has done a nice job with his technique and fundamentals,” Kingsbury said. “He’s come along.”
He had more to say about Miles before practice on Saturday. His play was “a big improvement from the week prior and that was exciting for us as a coaching staff.”
He “held his own” against guys Kingsbury called “really good players” late in the game.
The Cardinals currently do not have a veteran tackle on the bench. All they have are an undrafted rookie in William Sweet, Miles, a second-year player in Korey Cunningham and a third-year player in Rees Odhiambo.
If he keeps improving over the final two preseason games, Miles just might find himself on the roster in September.
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