The Cardinals War Room The Eve Before The Draft

Sep 15, 2013; Phoenix, AZ, USA; (left to right) Arizona Cardinals general manager Steve Keim, president Michael Bidwill and head coach Bruce Arians celebrate after beating the Detroit Lions 25-21 at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

The eve of the 2014 NFL draft is upon us and the war rooms across the league are being worked day and night to make the final touches on the board that are necessary. There may also be a call or two made for teams preparing to trade up or down to get that prospect that intriged them.

The Arizona Cardinals usually do not trade up or down to chase a player, they have said in many interviews that they have their board ready to take the best player on the board at number 20 unless a team hits them with a deal that they cannot refuse in gaining more picks.

The consensus all off season has been that this is a deep draft so the first round will go by leaving many first round talent on the board for the second round, making it difficult to determine who is the best player left on the board.

How does a team distinguish if a quarterback is better then an outside linebacker or a cornerback better than a wide receiver, is it by stats or stature; or is it strictly by the combined numbers? Who knows? Only those in the room debating these very facts for the last three months have some idea.

So when it comes to getting as close to a guarantee as possible it is safe to say getting a player that plays a position that puts that player on the field more times than not is the way to determine the best player on the board.

First round defensive players can make a first year impact more so than a wide receiver and a quarterback, so look for the Cardinals to strengthen their defense in the first round along with many other teams, leaving a host of skill players for picking late in rounds two and three.