Arizona Cardinals obtain value with draft’s final selection
By Jim Koch
The 2019 NFL Draft’s “Mr. Irrelevant” could end up being a solid contributor for the Arizona Cardinals’ new “Air Raid” offense
As the third day of the NFL Draft arrived, the Arizona Cardinals were looking to continue their momentum from the day before. General manager Steve Keim and his helpers were outstanding on Friday night, adding three extremely solid players. Could the Cards’ front office continue that success on Saturday?
At first glance, what Keim was able to fetch for the club from rounds four through seven looks promising. One selection in particular has the potential to be a productive contributor right away. And that individual just happened to be the final choice from the 2019 pool of talent.
Tight end Caleb Wilson became this year’s “Mr. Irrelevant”, a title bestowed upon the very last pick in the draft. The former UCLA Bruin was chosen 254th-overall by Arizona, but was actually projected to go much higher than that. In fact, some prognosticators had Wilson rated as a third-round prospect.
The Cardinals could certainly use some help at the position. Wilson joins an uninspiring group of tight ends that includes Charles Clay, Ricky Seals-Jones and Darrell Daniels. It’s kind of surprising, actually, that Keim waited until the end of the draft to address this area of the roster.
Wilson shined last season as a junior. The former high school quarterback caught 60 passes for 965 yards and four touchdowns for the Bruins. What was most impressive about the campaign was that Wilson averaged a healthy 16.1 yards per reception.
The knock on Wilson is that his blocking could use some work. In head coach Kliff Kingsbury’s “Air Raid” offense, however, that may not be too much of an issue. It was most likely Wilson’s pass-catching ability that caught the Cards’ eye.
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It appears that Arizona may have gotten some excellent value at the latest possible point of the draft. Kudos to Keim and company for bringing Wilson into the nest. Only time will tell, but there’s a very good chance that 2019’s “Mr. Irrelevant” will become a relevant part of the Cardinals’ future.