Cardinals agreed to terms with RB Rashard Mendenhall, formerly of the Steelers, on a one-year contract.

The addition throws a wrench into Ryan Williams' 2013 fantasy football outlook, though the two young backs will likely wage a camp battle. Cardinals coach Bruce Arians believes in true feature backs as opposed to committees, evidenced by his Mendenhall usage in Pittsburgh and Vick Ballard in Indy last year. Mendenhall is only 26 years old, and will be a full season removed from his ACL tear in 2013. Once compared to Edgerrin James by Arians, Mendenhall will probably shape up as a middle-round fantasy pick behind a weak Arizona offensive line.

Free agent Rashard Mendenhall is "en route" to visit the Cardinals.

It throws cold water on the notion that he's about to sign with Denver, as players often never leave visits. The Cardinals also have a major need at running back, and new coach Bruce Arians knows Mendenhall well. Mendy could easily make the desert his new home.

Profootballtalk.com reports the Broncos are likely to sign free agent Rashard Mendenhall.

The Cardinals and Dolphins are also interested. Mendenhall's market has been surprisingly strong coming off a down year after tearing his ACL in 2011. Mendenhall averaged 3.6 YPC on 51 totes last season. If Denver lands him, it likely means Willis McGahee will be released.

In addition to the Broncos and Dolphins, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports the Cardinals are interested in free agent Rashard Mendenhall.

We connected the Arizona-Mendenhall dots before based on his history with new Cardinals coach Bruce Arians, but this is the first substantive report. The Cards may envision Mendenhall as a fallback option should they miss out on free agent Reggie Bush. Mendenhall is 25 and played under Arians for four seasons.

The Denver Post reports that free agent Rashard Mendenhall is drawing interest from the Broncos.

Perhaps Mendenhall's market will be stronger than anticipated. The Dolphins have also shown a solid amount of interest, and we suspect the Cardinals have some too with former Steelers OC Bruce Arians now running the show. Per Denver beat writer Mike Klis, the Broncos' level of interest in Mendenhall is "hard to gauge." The addition of Mendenhall would likely lead to Willis McGahee's release.

NFL.com's Daniel Jeremiah is "hearing a lot of buzz" about the Dolphins being interested in free agent Rashard Mendenhall.

It would be an odd fit for a team reportedly enamored with Lamar Miller, and terrible news for Daniel Thomas. Mendenhall would be an upgrade on Thomas, but not a viable replacement for Reggie Bush. Mendenhall has just 77 catches in 57 career games, and is not an asset as a pass protector. Giving Mendenhall touches at the expense of Miller would be counterproductive.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette suggests Arizona as a possible landing spot for free agent Rashard Mendenhall.

New Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians was Pittsburgh's offensive coordinator during the first four years of Mendenhall's career. Much like incumbent Beanie Wells, He fits Arians' profile as a power runner that is rarely used in the passing game. Mendenhall will come cheaply after struggling in just six appearances last season.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reiterated that free agent Rashard Mendenhall is not expected to re-sign with the Steelers.

Nearly a month ago, the paper put Mendenhall's odds of returning at "not good," and those seem to have only gotten worse or stayed the same. Mendenhall, 25, would probably be best to sign a one-year, prove-it deal to rehab his market after a disappointing season coming off a torn ACL. The Steelers have just Baron Batch under contract in the backfield.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wonders if the Steelers are transitioning to a zone-blocking scheme in 2013.

OC Todd Haley and new OL coach Jack Bicknell Jr. have expressed their desire to get away from offensive linemen "who get huge and then they can't bend and move," while they intend to find players "who can move, run and have the quickness off the ball 'to get into people.'" Pittsburgh is expected to make little-to-no effort to re-sign impending free agents LT Max Starks and RG Ramon Foster, while they are also poised to cut LG Willie Colon. The move to a zone-blocking scheme would suit a guy like impending free agent Rashard Mendenhall, but it would be bad news for power runners like Jonathan Dwyer and Isaac Redman.

The Steelers' website confirms that free agent Rashard Mendenhall's return to Pittsburgh is "unlikely."

Mendenhall was suspended for a week in 2012 after not even showing up for a game against the Chargers. "Any time a player doesn't show up for a game, that's unacceptable," GM Kevin Colbert stated after the season. "There's no circumstance, other than obviously a family emergency or something of that nature which would have been predetermined to be excusable."