B+
Arizona Cardinals
The Cardinals fleeced the room on the phones and earned a B+.
by Stan93 ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 38 picks
· 9 steals
· 19 reaches
Call it belief, call it a gut call, but Shaun Dolac at Round 4, Pick 8 is 183 spots clear of consensus, and that is the headline. It does the job without flash, and the B+ reflects it.
However the rest shakes out, Walker at that price is a win they earned. The phones were where this weekend was really won.
The imported veterans give this class a floor the draft picks could not on their own. Quarterback is handled and the depth chart looks a good deal healthier for it.
In short, they left a little better than they arrived, which is the whole idea.
Pick-by-Pick
A reasonable price with a little left over, Shemar Stewart in the Round 1 slot. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
In pick No. 24 they get a quarterback's worst nightmare, though the board says they badly overpaid. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
In slot 25 they get a bendy edge with upside at fair value. Exactly the need they had to hit.
In No. 26 they get a premier pass rusher, a steep price for the projection. The biggest hole, addressed.
In the 27th pick they get a disruptor off the edge, though the board says they badly overpaid. The biggest hole, addressed.
Quietly one of the better values of the day, Walter Nolen at the 30th overall pick. The roster fit checks out.
In Round 1, Pick 31 they get a matchup weapon at tight end at a price that makes it sweeter. A clean fit for the roster.
In No. 32 they get a downhill hitter at safety, outstanding value to boot.
No drama and no debate, Armand Membou went about where he belonged in the 33rd overall pick. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
A premium they did not need to pay, Trey Amos a notch or two before his time. A minor itch, scratched.
They paid sticker price for Jihaad Campbell in pick 35, and that is fine. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
A market-rate interior defensive lineman, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Alfred Collins. A need, and now a little less of one.
Deone Walker in the 63rd pick is exactly on the number, no argument either way. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Tate Ratledge at the Round 3 slot is right where the board had him, plain and simple. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
They robbed the room for Jalon Walker here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
A straight-up fair deal on Aeneas Peebles at pick No. 79, value and slot in agreement. It fills a real need, too.
Denzel Burke at the 80th pick is a conviction pick that outran the value. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Rylie Mills this early at Round 3, Pick 23. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
Logan Brown at slot 89 is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Jack Nelson at the Round 3 slot is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Tez Johnson at the 92nd overall pick is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Sai'vion Jones at No. 93 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Dillon Gabriel at pick No. 94 is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
A real head-scratcher, Chase Lundt in the 102nd overall pick is miles ahead of his ranking. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
A slide stopped in No. 103, with Carson Schwesinger worth more than the price. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Shaun Dolac. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
A wild overpay on Kyle Williams in Round 4, Pick 15, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Value with a capital V on Cam Skattebo in the Round 4 slot, a genuine coup. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
RJ Harvey in pick 123 is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Howard Cross III at slot 152 jumps the queue by a touch more than is comfortable. It fills a real need, too.
A big swing on Willie Lampkin at slot 153, well ahead of any board in the building. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Oronde Gadsden II at pick No. 159 is the sort of value that quietly wins a weekend. A need, and now a little less of one.
They talked themselves into Tonka Hemingway at the 160th overall pick, and the board did not agree. The roster fit checks out.
A tidy bit of business in No. 165, where Nick Nash graded well above the range. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Value said wait; Ricky White III in the 171st pick says they were not listening. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Steal is underselling it; Cody Simon at the Round 6 slot is a heist with the alarm still ringing. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
By-the-book stuff, Jack Kiser at Round 6, Pick 16 squarely in line with his ranking. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Jake Briningstool well ahead of where he belonged. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.