C-
Arizona Cardinals
The phones sank the Cardinals this weekend: C-.
by Stan93 ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 51 picks
· 16 steals
· 28 reaches
The Cardinals bet big and early on Shaun Dolac, 152 picks ahead of the board. Bold does not always mean right. Fine in stretches, shaky in others: a C-.
They banked enough surplus on Emmanwori to cover a lot of smaller sins. The trades bled value they could not afford to lose.
The verdict is a shrug for now, with the swing picks left to write the real ending.
Pick-by-Pick
Donovan Ezeiruaku at No. 34 is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Jared Ivey well ahead of where he belonged. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
The board fumbled Alfred Collins all the way to slot 80, and they scooped it up. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
A straight-up fair deal on Donovan Jackson at pick 81, value and slot in agreement. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Dylan Fairchild in pick No. 85 is the kind of reach that only looks good if he outplays it. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
A real head-scratcher, Emery Jones Jr. in the 87th overall pick is miles ahead of his ranking. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
A wild overpay on Antwaun Powell-Ryland in the 88th overall pick, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Aeneas Peebles at pick 89 is a sensible buy, a touch better than market for the interior defensive lineman. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
You do not let a linebacker like Demetrius Knight Jr. reach slot 90 and blink. They did not. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
A clean, defensible pick in No. 91 with a little surplus value in Carson Schwesinger. It fills a real need, too.
A safety of that caliber at the Round 3 slot is the definition of value, full stop. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
Harold Fannin Jr. at the 96th pick is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
They paid sticker price for Jalen Milroe in pick No. 97, and that is fine. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Value with a capital V on Tez Johnson in Round 3, Pick 36, a genuine coup. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They barely believed it either: Elijah Arroyo still on the board at pick 114. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
They talked themselves into Logan Brown at the Round 4 slot, and the board did not agree. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Willie Lampkin in slot 118 is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
They reached a country mile for Nick Nash at No. 119, and the board is aghast. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Mello Dotson at the 120th pick is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
Jabbar Muhammad at pick No. 122 is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. It is more luxury than necessity; they were already set here.
Savion Williams at the 123rd overall pick is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
They will replay Cam Skattebo at Round 4, Pick 23 for years; that is how good the value is. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Miles Frazier. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Good things come to war rooms that wait, and Jordan Phillips at the 127th pick is the proof. The roster fit checks out.
Somehow Chris Paul Jr. was still sitting there in slot 128, and they pounced on premier linebacker value. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
No drama and no debate, Kyren Lacy went about where he belonged in pick 129. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
They reached into another round for Cam Jackson, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. A need, and now a little less of one.
A market-rate linebacker, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Cody Simon. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
A conviction pick on Pat Bryant at No. 138 that the board grades a round light. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Malachi Moore in the Round 4 slot is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. Nice player, but the depth chart did not need him here.
Raheim Sanders at the Round 5 slot is a clear overpay, with better names still on the board. The roster fit checks out.
A top-tier offensive lineman at a bargain, Luke Kandra in the 141st overall pick, plain and simple. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
They let Shemar Turner come to them and pounced at slot 146. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Value said wait; Chase Lundt in pick No. 147 says they were not listening. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Cobee Bryant at No. 148 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. They doubled down on a strength rather than a need.
A slide stopped in pick 150, with Jay Higgins worth more than the price. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Dont'e Thornton Jr. this early at Round 5, Pick 12. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Antwane Wells Jr. in the 153rd pick is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
A big swing on Ricky White III at Round 5, Pick 15, well ahead of any board in the building. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Kyle Williams in the Round 5 slot, miles early. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Taking Terrance Ferguson in the 156th pick is close to grand larceny; a tight end that good had no business lasting this long. A need, and now a little less of one.
A premium they did not need to pay, RJ Harvey a notch or two before his time. It fills a real need, too.
They did well to land Vernon Broughton in pick No. 162, just ahead of his grade. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Shaun Dolac at pick 163 is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
A reach for Ty Robinson in slot 164; a little patience would have been rewarded. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
A quiet steal in the 165th overall pick: Jackson Slater for less than the market said. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Carson Vinson well ahead of where he belonged. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Tosh Baker. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
A real head-scratcher, Jalen Travis in the Round 5 slot is miles ahead of his ranking. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
They reached into another round for Garrett Dellinger, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Jake Briningstool in slot 172 is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. It patches a soft spot without any drama.