NFL writer Peter King recently did an All-Time NFL Draft, where 14 former and current Arizona Cardinals were selected
The NFL offseason feels long at times, and fans are certainly ready for football to return. However, the downtime allows for some very interesting projects from writers who cover the sport.
One such recent project was from Sports Illustrated writer Peter King. For his Monday Morning Quarterback article, King, and 11 other football minds, put together a mock draft selecting the greatest players in the history of the game.
The process featured a total of 300 players and one round of head coaches. Of those 312 selections, 14 were former, or current, Cardinals.
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The first former Cardinal taken, not surprisingly, was Hall of Fame cornerback Dick “Night Train” Lane. He played for the Chicago Cardinals from 1954-59, and made the Pro Bowl four times.
The secondary, naturally, was well represented. Roger Werhli, Larry Wilson, and Aeneas Williams all were selected in the first half of the process. All three are Hall of Famers and made 23 Pro Bowls between them. Current star Patrick Peterson also made the cut, and was selected 284th.
The Cardinals had one other Hall of Fame player that made the list, that spent most of their career with the team, in offensive lineman Dan Dierdorf. The six-time Pro Bowler spent his whole career with the St Louis Cardinals. Guard Alan Faneca also made the cut. He only spent one season, his final one, in Arizona.
Perhaps the greatest Cardinal of all-time also made the list. Larry Fitzgerald was taken with the 201st pick. Fitzgerald is a sure-fire future Hall of Famer, and one of the greatest wide receivers in the history of the NFL.
Some other players who didn’t spend a lot of time with the Cardinals, like Faneca, also were also selected. Emmitt Smith spent two seasons in Arizona, and Wilber Marshall was only a Cardinal for the 1994 season.
Rounding out the list of Cardinals was two players from the 1920s. Running back Jim Thorpe and guard Walt Kiesling played together on the Chicago Cardinals in 1929.
Next: Twenty-Five Greatest Players in Cardinals History
Two great former Cardinals head coaches were selected in the final round. Don Coryell ran the team from 1973 to 1977 and returned the Cardinals to the playoffs for the first time since the 1940s. Curly Lambeau isn’t known for his time with the Chicago Cardinals, but did coach there for two seasons