The Arizona Cardinals are one of the teams in the NFL that is near the bottom of the league, but are not a bad situation. They have a franchise quarterback in Kyler Murray, a running back in James Conner who had a career year last season, and have taken care of some immediate areas of improvement in free agency. With the NFL draft being just over a month away, the Cardinals are going to need to identify a plan of attack as to what they plan on doing with their draft picks.
General manager Monti Ossenfort has a lot to work with in the draft. Having 11 picks, including 6 picks in the top 100, there should be no excuse as to why Ossenfort comes up short. One of the headlines as of lately involving the Cardinals is what they could with the #4 overall pick.
There are many avenues the Cardinals could take, but they need to be smart with their moves and there are four moves that would make them winners coming out of this draft.
Here are four ways the Cardinals can win the NFL draft.
4.) Bring in offensive line depth
The Cardinals are past the Kyler Murray-torn ACL era but that is an injury that will always be a concern moving forward. Murray is a mobile quarterback who can extend plays with his legs, but he will now need to be somewhat limited to avoid any potential non-contact injury. Arizona has brought in two offensive linemen in Jonah Williams and Evan Brown. Williams will help protect the outside of the pocket while Brown can play guard or center as a versatile offensive lineman.
A team can never have enough offensive linemen heading into training camp, but the Cardinals can still future starters in the draft as well. Arizona has the chance to bring in depth in this draft and if they can draft a couple of offensive linemen, they will have a lot to work with to make sure that Murray’s health is better protected. A draft prospect like Graham Barton out of Duke is someone who has been climbing up draft boards and with the Cardinals having a first-round pick later in the first round, this could be a potential great fit.
3.) Draft 2 wide receivers, including at No. 4 overall
One of the hot topics of the NFL surrounding the Cardinals is what they will do with their first, first-round pick in the top five. With the top three teams ahead of the Cardinals in the draft expected to take quarterbacks, Arizona should be able to draft the first non-quarterback. However, rumors are heating up about the Cardinals listening to offers for the #4 pick and it could very well involve a team like the Minnesota Vikings who have the worst kept secret that they are looking to trade up for a quarterback. Unless the Cardinals receive an offer that is undeniable, Arizona needs to stay put at #4.
With the #4 overall pick, if wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. finds himself on the board available, Monti Ossenfort needs to not waste time and turn in the card that has Harrison’s name on it. Then at some point later on in the draft (preferably in the 2nd or 3rd round), the Cardinals need to find another receiver who has the potential to start in the next year or two. With Arizona failing to address the wide receiver position in free agency, getting two rookie receivers in this deep class would be a big score for the Cardinals.
2.) Build up the defense
There are a few reasons as to why the Cardinals are in the top five of this NFL draft. With Murray missing half of the season, and the Arizona defense being near the bottom of the league, the Cardinals still need to improve various aspects of their defense. Ossenfort has gone out this free agency period and acquired help on all three levels of the defense, but it is not enough. Arizona still needs to improve a defense that was giving up over 140 rushing yards per game last year and on average, gave up about 27 points a game on defense.
With a head coach in Jonathan Gannon whose specialty is defense, Ossenfort needs to make sure that positions like edge rusher, defensive tackle and positions in the secondary are addressed sooner rather than later. While the game has been offensive-heavy in recent memory, teams still need to make sure their defensive unit is above average to have success throughout the season.
1.) Acquire future draft capital
Building a team through the draft is not the easiest, but it helps with continuity and it is better financially in the long run. The Cardinals are a team that have one of the most draft picks this year, but if they are able to find a way to acquire extra draft capital this year or even in the future, this will make them winners right off the bat. With 7 rounds, Arizona will have the opportunity to pick more than other teams who may even be missing draft picks. There is so much talent in this draft on offense so while Ossenfort needs to address the offensive side of the ball, if he can make a move or two that keeps Arizona more busy in the draft this year and going into next year, he will be looked at as a genius.
With 6 picks in the top 100, the Cardinals could easily make a trade with another team who wants to go and acquire someone. As long as the compensation back to Arizona works out in their benefit, Cardinals fans should not have an issue with future picks to work with.