NFL teams like the Arizona Cardinals can use the draft to fill holes in the roster, or to strengthen an already strong position, or to build depth. For the teams drafting high, need is usually the priority, especially at quarterback. The constant quandary is simple: Do teams select what they need, or the best player available?
The Draft is an annual exercise that pits the crucial needs of a team compared with a can’t-miss prospect at a position where your team already is stacked. Do teams ignore an obvious need to select that workout warrior who can bench press a million pounds a thousand times, or runs that blistering 40 time?
Fox Sports NFL Draft analyst Rob Rang recently published a non-mock draft that addressed teams’ needs only. He ignored the best player available scenario and stuck to a team’s most pressing need. The Cardinals' top choice came a bit out of left field.
With the 16th pick, Rang says, the Cardinals’ best fit is Texas offensive lineman Kelvin Banks Jr., of Texas.
Cardinals projected to select Texas OT Kelvin Banks Jr. in 2025 NFL Mock Draft
Rang believes that Banks "has the lateral agility and grit to offer an immediate upgrade at left guard" while also providing some insurance at the tackle spots. NFL.com says Banks “will become a good NFL starter within two years.”
NFL.com's Eric Edholm published his list of the top 100 draft prospects last month. He ranks Banks at No. 19, so if the Cardinals select him at 16, they would appear to get appropriate value.
In the copycat NFL, Rang might be onto something. The hottest offseason trends are that you can build a champion — or at least a playoff team — by having the strongest possible offensive and defensive lines. And, that running backs now are valuable and worth drafting high and being paid well.
That strategy worked for the Super Bowl champion Eagles — the offensive line protected quarterback Jalen Hurts and gave Saquon Barkley room to ramble. Barkley rushed for 2,005 yards in 16 games and was the NFL Offensive Player of the Year.
As for Banks himself, the former Longhorns star has established himself as a premium athlete at the left tackle spot who should emerge as a quality pass protector immediately in the pros.
Drafting college kids is a crapshoot, dripping with risk. Every team has had first-round failures. Every team has enjoyed unexpected success on a late-round pick.
Teams do what they can when evaluating players before the draft. Then, when the due diligence is over and they are on the clock, they make their pick. And hope for the best.