Arizona Cardinals 7-round mock draft, including one massive trade

Round 7

This one is self-explanatory, the Cardinals still need a kicker. Although they signed Cole Murphy, competition in the seventh round couldn’t hurt.

Gay is a strong-legged kicker who’d be an ideal replacement to 44-year-old Phil Dawson. In two seasons with the Utah Utes, Gay was a perfect 85 for 85 on PAT’s, and 37 for 38 on kicks under 40 yards.

On kicks from the 40-49 yard range, Gay was a solid 11 for 17. But, when the kicks were 50 yards or longer, Gay shined as he drilled 8 of his 11 kicks, including a 55 yarder and a 56 yarder in two separate seasons. Sounds like a potential Phil Dawson replacement to me.

Malik Reed is a guy who’s boosted his draft stock since the start of the 2019 draft season. Although he didn’t get invited to the combine, he tested well at the annual Senior events and was productive during his last two seasons for Nevada.

Pro Football Focus graded Reed’s 2018 season with a 90.3 grade, which puts him alongside elite players that include Nick Bosa and Josh Allen. Even more impressive, Reed had a pass-rush productivity grade of 12.2, good for fifth amongst edge rushers in the 2019 class. He also finished 13th at run-stop rate at 8.9%, and snaps per outside pressure at 10.4.

Reed had 24.0 sacks during his time at Nevada, per PFF, he also had 117 run-stops. His ability to bend around the edge and gain leverage with an explosive first step helped him succeed on a regular basis. However, he falls to the seventh here due to a lack of length, undersized frame (6-2, 235-pounds), and lack of technique. But he could develop into an NFL caliber rotational pass-rusher.

In my first Arizona Cardinals mock draft, I had McSorley going to the team with the ‘Mr. Irrelevant’ pick. In my most recent one, we do the same, even though we don’t know if he’s a quarterback, safety, or wide receiver.

Although it’s doubtful that McSorley could be a starting quarterback in the NFL, it’s worth noting that he’s the winningest shot-caller in the storied Penn State football program.

Kliff Kingsbury could use McSorley as a weapon in the same fashion that Sean Payton did with QB/RB/WR Taysom Hill in 2018. McSorley ran a 4.57 40-yard-dash at the combine, which will make him a threat as a read-option player, much like Hill.

If McSorley wants to stick to playing quarterback, having a quarterback-whisperer in Kliff Kingsbury isn’t a bad way to develop him. But if he doesn’t stick in the NFL, so what? He was the last pick in the draft; the Cardinals can afford to have some fun with it, or at least I can.

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