C-
Arizona Cardinals
The Cardinals land in the muddy middle: C-.
by Stan93 ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 27 picks
· 12 steals
· 11 reaches
Nobody else had Cam Jackson anywhere near the 142nd overall pick. The Cardinals did, by 88 spots, and that gap is the whole story. The good and the questionable cancel out to a C-.
Nelson falling to them is the kind of break a good board is built to catch. A small leak at the table, if not a fatal one. They went 8 of 8 on their needs, which is most of what a draft is for.
The bill for those future picks comes due whether the class hits or not.
So much rides on JT Tuimoloau that the real verdict is a season or two away.
Pick-by-Pick
In pick No. 30 they get a disruptor off the edge, a steep price for the projection. Exactly the need they had to hit.
You do not let a cornerback like Jahdae Barron reach the Round 2 slot and blink. They did not. It adds depth where they could use a little.
Donovan Ezeiruaku at slot 35 is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Tate Ratledge in the 47th pick is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
No drama and no debate, Deone Walker went about where he belonged in No. 62. A need, and now a little less of one.
Jihaad Campbell in the 63rd overall pick should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Marcus Mbow at the 78th pick is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Antwaun Powell-Ryland at slot 85 is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
They read the board right and Andrew Mukuba was the payoff at pick 86. Depth more than a fix, but depth they can use.
Carson Schwesinger in the Round 3 slot is fine work, a shade of surplus and no downside. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
They robbed the room for Jack Bech here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Value with a capital V on Ozzy Trapilo in pick No. 102, a genuine coup. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Mason Taylor in the 103rd overall pick is a gift, value that borders on unfair. It fills a real need, too.
Jordan Phillips at No. 110 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
A real head-scratcher, Willie Lampkin in the 113th pick is miles ahead of his ranking. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
A wide receiver of that caliber at pick 114 is the definition of value, full stop. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Darius Alexander in the Round 4 slot is early enough to raise a brow, if not a full objection. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
They reached into another round for Raheim Sanders, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
The board fumbled Jalen Milroe all the way to pick No. 124, and they scooped it up. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Cam Jackson in slot 142 is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
They let Mello Dotson come to them and pounced at No. 153. It is more luxury than necessity; they were already set here.
They barely believed it either: Jack Nelson still on the board at the 180th overall pick. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Tonka Hemingway in pick No. 192, miles early. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
By-the-book stuff, Trey Zuhn III at the Round 6 slot squarely in line with his ranking. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Circle this one: Carson Vinson at No. 239 is a fall that decides a draft. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Jalen Travis at the 251st overall pick is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
They talked themselves into Shaun Dolac at slot 256, and the board did not agree. The roster fit checks out.