D+
Arizona Cardinals
A costly weekend of dealing drags the Cardinals to a D+.
by Stan93 ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 28 picks
· 11 steals
· 12 reaches
The rest of the league had time to spare on Shaun Dolac; the Cardinals did not wait, grabbing him 141 spots ahead at the 151st pick.
The trade table is where this weekend went wrong. The Fortune pick is fine in a vacuum, less so with quarterback still on the board.
A whole weekend of picks and quarterback is somehow still a want. However the rest shakes out, Campbell at that price is a win they earned.
Bottom line, they will need several of these picks to beat their grades just to break even, and quarterback is still a hole.
Pick-by-Pick
In the Round 1 slot they get a quarterback's worst nightmare, a steep price for the projection. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
They reached into another round for Donovan Ezeiruaku, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
The board fumbled Derrick Harmon all the way to Round 2, Pick 15, and they scooped it up. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Steal is underselling it; Jalon Walker at pick 55 is a heist with the alarm still ringing. A need, and now a little less of one.
Circle this one: Malaki Starks at slot 56 is a fall that decides a draft. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
A market-rate interior defensive lineman, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Deone Walker. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
They paid up for Ozzy Trapilo at pick 78 when waiting would have done the job. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
They will replay Harold Fannin Jr. at Round 3, Pick 22 for years; that is how good the value is. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Jihaad Campbell in pick No. 88 is a gift, value that borders on unfair. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Jermari Harris at No. 97 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. Useful body for a position without much behind the starter.
Jaylin Noel in the 105th pick is fine work, a shade of surplus and no downside. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
The board had Dylan Fairchild higher than slot 109, and the offensive lineman fell to them anyway. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Tez Johnson at the Round 4 slot is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
A real head-scratcher, Rylie Mills in the 113th overall pick is miles ahead of his ranking. It fills a real need, too.
A top-tier tight end at a bargain, Mason Taylor in the 121st overall pick, plain and simple. The roster fit checks out.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Trey Zuhn III in No. 123, miles early. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Jackson Slater in pick 126 is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
The eyebrow-raiser of the weekend. They went cornerback with O'Donnell Fortune while clear needs at quarterback sat open.
The board had cheaper options than Pat Bryant at the 131st pick, and it noticed. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Taking Cam Skattebo in Round 5, Pick 5 is close to grand larceny; a running back that good had no business lasting this long. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
They reached a country mile for Howard Cross III at slot 143, and the board is aghast. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing Jay Higgins in pick No. 146. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Cody Simon slid further than he should have, and pick No. 148 is lovely value for the linebacker. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Shaun Dolac at Round 5, Pick 14 is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Willie Lampkin at pick 156 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
A tidy little value on Nick Nash in the 157th pick, a step better than break-even. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Kyle Williams in the Round 5 slot is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
RJ Harvey in the 161st overall pick is the kind of reach that only looks good if he outplays it. The roster fit checks out.