NFC West draft success keeps pressure on Cardinals to nail Day 2 picks

The Arizona Cardinals went into the first round of the NFL Draft and came away with a franchise wide receiver and an underrated defensive lineman who can create a pass rush for the defense. Monti Ossenfort stayed away from trading and stuck with his picks with Marvin Harrison Jr. and Darius Robinson. Now the Cardinals will head into the second night of the draft with four expected picks (#35, #66, #71, and #90) to keep filling in holes on the roster. There were plenty of players who have first round talent that fell out of the draft board and should be chosen in tonight’s segment of the draft.

Even though the Cardinals had a great draft, the rest of the NFC West also had great draft picks of their own at their respective picks. After Arizona chose Harrison at No.4, the next NFC West team to pick was the Seattle Seahawks at No.16, followed by the Los Angeles Rams at No.19 and then the San Francisco 49ers drafting at No.31.

Seattle was just the second team to select a defensive player and they drafted Texas defensive tackle Byron Murphy II. The Seahawks acquired a fantastic run-stopper in the middle of the defensive line in Murphy. In addition, Murphy developed a great pass rush in his last year at Texas and can create pressure up the middle. This is going to be tough for the Cardinals to have success running the ball in-between the tackles when they face Seattle this season. 

After rumors of the Rams trying to trade up into the top ten of the draft, they would stay put at the 19th pick and they picked up an edge rusher in Jared Verse out of Florida State. Much like Murphy, Verse has the talent to shed blocks against the run and help contain the outside of a pocket. He has speed and strength to get past a pass blocker so he could make life hard for Paris Johnson or Jonah Williams. In addition, Verse will be paired with Kobie Turner and Byron Young both who are young great players for the Rams which gives the Rams a potential pass rush that can be a force for the Cardinals.

At the end of the round, the 49ers drafted a wide receiver in Ricky Pearsall out of Florida. With there being uncertainty with Brandon Aiyuk’s future with the team, the 49ers are able to acquire a potential replacement for Aiyuk should he be in a different uniform this season. Pearsall is a great option for the spot in this offense. He has good hands and led the Gators in receptions and yards last season. Pearsall also is a great third-down option so if Brock Purdy needs a go-to guy in crucial moments, Pearsall could be the guy to keep San Francisco on the field.

The Cardinals are going to have their hands full no matter what when they face their NFC West rivals. Make no mistake about it, the whole NFC West got better last night in some aspects and that puts pressure on the Cardinals to have a great day two of the NFL Draft.