Insane 2022 mock draft has Cardinals drafting a QB in the first round

A recent mock draft has the Arizona Cardinals using their first-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft to add a quarterback to eventually replace Kyler Murray.

Throughout the 2022 offseason, the majority of the news related to the Arizona Cardinals has related to their current relationship with quarterback Kyler Murray.

Recently, Cardinals general manager Steve Keim declared that there is “zero chance” of the team trading Murray, which then caused the quarterback to post on Twitter that “AZ is home” and he wants to “win Super Bowls” with the Cardinals.

Then earlier this week, the Arizona Republic’s Bob McManaman reported that Arizona is expected to pick up Murray’s fifth-year option and that the team will eventually agree to a new contract for the young signal-caller this summer.

Recent 2022 mock draft has the Arizona Cardinals selecting former Pittsburgh QB Kenny Pickett in the first round

Despite the Cardinals and Murray recently expressing their commitments to each other, that didn’t prevent one draft analyst to predict that Arizona will do something outrageous in the upcoming 2022 NFL Draft.

Luke Easterling of USA Today’s Draft Wire recently shared a 2022 mock draft that has the Cardinals selecting former Pittsburgh quarterback Kenny Pickett with the No. 23 pick in the first round.

So instead of filling needs like wide receiver, guard, or cornerback, Easterling believes Arizona will decide to use their first-round selection on someone to replace Murray in the near future.

Now, this mock draft was released before the news came out that the Cardinals will be picking up Murray’s fifth-year option, so perhaps Easterling has a different opinion about this possibility now.

However, he did mention that a move like this wouldn’t come as a surprise this offseason given all of the crazy trades involving big-name players that have happened during the last few months.

Still, Arizona drafting a quarterback this year seems a little too bold. Especially when this year’s group of passing prospects aren’t viewed as a very talented bunch.