C-
Arizona Cardinals
A costly weekend of dealing drags the Cardinals to a C-.
by Stan93 ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 65 picks
· 15 steals
· 43 reaches
The tape said wait; the Cardinals did not. Shaun Dolac went at the 160th pick, a good 132 picks before the board was ready. Fine in stretches, shaky in others: a C-.
Whatever else happened, they won the night they took Smith. Overpaying at the table undid a lot of the good work elsewhere. They went 8 of 8 on their needs, which is most of what a draft is for.
If Walter Nolen and a couple of the gambles land, hindsight will be kinder than this grade.
Pick-by-Pick
In No. 31 they get a disruptive interior force at a price that makes it sweeter.
They paid up for Alfred Collins at pick 47 when waiting would have done the job. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Antwaun Powell-Ryland at the Round 3 slot is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Denzel Burke at the 81st overall pick jumps the queue by a touch more than is comfortable. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
They robbed the room for Andrew Mukuba here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. Useful body for a position without much behind the starter.
David Walker at Round 3, Pick 24 is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
They talked themselves into Ahmed Hassanein at the 97th pick, and the board did not agree. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
A slide stopped in pick No. 99, with Tez Johnson worth more than the price. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Emery Jones Jr. at pick 101 is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Jaylin Noel at Round 4, Pick 4 is a sound buy, the sort that quietly helps a class. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
A reach for Joshua Farmer in slot 107; a little patience would have been rewarded. It fills a real need, too.
Luke Kandra at the 111th overall pick is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
A big swing on Rylie Mills at No. 113, well ahead of any board in the building. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
A real head-scratcher, Chase Lundt in the Round 4 slot is miles ahead of his ranking. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
The board fumbled Malachi Moore all the way to the Round 4 slot, and they scooped it up. They doubled down on a strength rather than a need.
They will replay Elijah Arroyo at pick 121 for years; that is how good the value is. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
They reached into another round for Jabbar Muhammad, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. Stacking talent where they were already deep.
You do not let a linebacker like Demetrius Knight Jr. reach pick No. 124 and blink. They did not. A need, and now a little less of one.
Carson Schwesinger at slot 125 is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. The roster fit checks out.
Jonah Monheim at the 126th overall pick is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Vernon Broughton well ahead of where he belonged. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
Tyler Cooper in the 128th pick is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They went early on Pat Bryant in slot 131, and the value did not follow. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Value said wait; Trey Zuhn III in pick No. 133 says they were not listening. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
The board had cheaper options than Nick Nash at pick 137, and it noticed. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
They paid sticker price for Will Howard in the 138th pick, and that is fine. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Steal is underselling it; Lathan Ransom at the Round 5 slot is a heist with the alarm still ringing. Depth on depth, at a spot that was hardly crying out.
A wild overpay on Simeon Barrow Jr. in Round 5, Pick 3, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Cody Simon in No. 141 lands just on the right side of the ledger. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Willie Lampkin this early at the 145th overall pick. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Jay Higgins at the 146th pick is money in the bank, a linebacker taken below his worth. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Ricky White III in the Round 5 slot 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.
Cam Skattebo in pick 149 is a gift, value that borders on unfair. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
They reached a country mile for Kyle Williams at pick No. 151, and the board is aghast. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Jahvaree Ritzie in No. 157, miles early. 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.
Tonka Hemingway in the 161st overall pick is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. It fills a real need, too.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Dont'e Thornton Jr. in Round 5, Pick 25, miles early. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Somehow Chris Paul Jr. was still sitting there in the Round 5 slot, and they pounced on premier linebacker value. A need, and now a little less of one.
No drama and no debate, RJ Harvey went about where he belonged in slot 168. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Seth McLaughlin this early at the 170th overall pick. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Jonas Sanker at the 173rd pick is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. A want dressed up as a pick, at a spot they had covered.
They talked themselves into Jacob Parrish at No. 179, and the board did not agree. They added to a strength when a need was still open elsewhere.
Jack Kiser in pick 181 is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Taking Oronde Gadsden II in pick No. 185 is close to grand larceny; a tight end that good had no business lasting this long. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
A real head-scratcher, Jalen Travis in Round 6, Pick 11 is miles ahead of his ranking. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Kobe Hudson at pick No. 189 is a clear overpay, with better names still on the board. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
They took Roc Taylor at par in the 192nd pick, which is nothing to complain about. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Joshua Gray slid further than he should have, and Round 6, Pick 19 is lovely value for the offensive lineman. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Jared Wilson at the 195th overall pick is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
They jumped the gun on Hayden Conner, taking him earlier than his grade liked. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
A big swing on Miles Frazier at slot 197, well ahead of any board in the building. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Ty Hamilton at the Round 6 slot is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Thor Griffith well ahead of where he belonged. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
They reached a country mile for Paris Shand at the 202nd pick, and the board is aghast. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
They reached into another round for Jay Toia, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
A wild overpay on Cody Lindenberg in pick No. 209, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. The roster fit checks out.
Maxen Hook at No. 223 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. Pure best-available; the position was not exactly begging.
Value said wait; Shilo Sanders in the Round 7 slot says they were not listening. It is more luxury than necessity; they were already set here.
A top-tier running back at a bargain, Brashard Smith in slot 225, plain and simple. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Kaden Prather at the 226th overall pick is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for De'Corian Clark. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They paid a round early for Jackson Hawes in Round 7, Pick 12, more than the board wanted. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Bryson Eason in the 230th overall pick is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
No edge and no loss on DJ Campbell in No. 231; it is a wash and a sensible one. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.