TEMPE, Ariz. -- Arizona Cardinals assistant coach Tom Pratt is a patient man.

He’s been waiting, along with the rest of the coaching staff, for the Frostee Rucker they thought they were signing as a free agent in 2013 to surface. His patience has paid off the past two games.

Rucker, a 31-year-old defensive end, had seven tackles, three sacks and a forced fumble.

Pratt, the Cardinals' 79-year-old pass rush specialty coach, has seen it coming. He saw Rucker’s good hands and quick feet. He saw the burst off the line of scrimmage. He saw how Rucker finished plays.

He saw glimpses, a few plays here, a few plays there. That’s why Pratt continued to wait.

Last season, it was a matter of opportunity. As a backup behind Darnell Dockett and Calais Campbell, Rucker played the fewest snaps of his nine-year career in a season in which he played in all 16 games.

This season, injuries have dogged Rucker. A strained left calf suffered during warm-ups for against San Diego Chargers limited Rucker to three snaps in Week 1 and forced him out of the Week 2 game vs. the New York Giants. He’s also been dealing with a toe issue for the last two seasons, defensive coordinator Todd Bowles said.

“He’s just been one of those guys that we’ve just been kind of waiting for,” Pratt said. “And now it seems like he’s just blossomed here, particularly in the last two weeks.

“He’s had two really good games.”

That’s what Rucker is capable of when healthy. He said a career-high five sacks is a product of opportunity. But it’s more a result of him being as close to 100 percent as he’s been all year.

“That does help being able to run full speed,” Rucker said. “I almost felt like the beginning of the year when I was playing, I was a liability because I couldn’t give it my all and I was almost in the way because I couldn’t run and I couldn’t do the things I know I’m capable of doing.

“But they stuck with me and they let me play and still provide leadership and be in that group, and they let me get through it. And I’m able to play full speed.”

Rucker’s calf injury prevented him from planting and cutting. He couldn’t take on a block. He sees the good fortune of not being placed on injured reserve/designated to return.

The last three months have been tough on Rucker, who found himself in the starting lineup for the first time since 2012, after Darnell Dockett tore his ACL in training camp. His injuries were limiting and his frustration grew, but he assimilated to the starting defensive line by doing what he does best.

“Frostee has always been kind of the 'dirty' player for us,” Bowles said. “Calais [Campbell] and [Darnell] Dockett and Dan [Williams] get all the credit but Frostee does a lot of things in there.

“He does all the right things. He's not a flashy player, but he’s tough. He makes plays and he’s been coming up with some sacks lately. I’m happy for him.”

But what’s gotten into Rucker these last two weeks?

General manager Steve Keim told Rucker he must have found the Fountain of Youth. His teammates on the defensive line think it’s how the football pendulum swings. Sacks, Campbell said, come in bunches, and Rucker has been in the right place at the right time.

Cardinals coach Bruce Arians said Rucker been "an ultimate pro" playing "with pain, he plays relentless, he always does the right thing with the right technique, and he’s so trustworthy."

But Pratt doesn’t think the proverbial light went off for Rucker.

“We knew it was there,” he said. “It was just a question of being able to express himself and that seems to be what he’s going on right now.”

Re-signed to a two-year deal in March, in part because his voice in the locker room carried significant weight with the younger players, Rucker entered the season as a leader one and off the field.

But while he’s been teaching the younger Cardinals, for the first times in Rucker’s career, he's also getting an education beyond what he experienced in Cleveland and Cincinnati.

“The school of football has been huge,” Rucker said. “The education has been huge. Teaching people why they’re calling the plays on downs and distances and different things. I’ve been blessed to have a lot of coaches that were very detailed like that, but I talked to a lot of people around the league and they were never coached like that to understand why they’re calling the call.

“At this stage of my career, I need more mental. I want the knowledge of the game and why they’re calling it and that’s what they’re feeding me and it’s been huge.”