B+
Arizona Cardinals
Simpson is the Cardinals' new face under center. Grade: B+.
by Stan93 ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 23 picks
· 19 steals
· 2 reaches
The search is over. The Cardinals handed the keys to Ty Simpson, and the whole operation now runs on his development.
That Haulcy pick is the receipt they will wave around later. The phones were where this weekend was really won. They are betting Capehart proves the room right and everyone else wrong.
In short, they left a little better than they arrived, which is the whole idea.
Pick-by-Pick
In Round 1, Pick 12 they get a workhorse for the backfield, and a steal at that. A clean fit for the roster.
In slot 15 they get a three-down second-level presence, outstanding value to boot. A real need, handled.
In No. 20 they get a passer to set the clock by. The biggest hole, addressed.
They paid up for Blake Miller at the 33rd pick when waiting would have done the job. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
They let Olaivavega Ioane come to them and pounced at the Round 2 slot. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Value with a capital V on Cashius Howell in pick No. 35, a genuine coup. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Good things come to war rooms that wait, and Sonny Styles at the 36th overall pick is the proof. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
A top-tier offensive lineman at a bargain, Emmanuel Pregnon in pick 65, plain and simple. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Chris Bell at the 66th overall pick is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
They will replay Caleb Banks at No. 67 for years; that is how good the value is. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
A slide stopped in pick No. 68, with Eli Stowers worth more than the price. A need, and now a little less of one.
Somehow Emmanuel McNeil-Warren was still sitting there in Round 3, Pick 5, and they pounced on premier safety value. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
Circle this one: Lee Hunter at pick 81 is a fall that decides a draft. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
You do not let a cornerback like Keionte Scott reach the Round 3 slot and blink. They did not. A minor itch, scratched.
Malachi Lawrence slipping to slot 84 is the kind of luck good rooms make for themselves. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
A.J. Haulcy in the 101st pick is a gift, value that borders on unfair. A want more than a need, though you can never have too many.
Taking Germie Bernard in the Round 4 slot is close to grand larceny; a wide receiver that good had no business lasting this long. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
They read the board right and Ted Hurst was the payoff at the 103rd overall pick. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Quietly one of the better values of the day, Treydan Stukes at Round 4, Pick 4. A luxury on a unit that was already in good shape.
They barely believed it either: Chase Bisontis still on the board at pick 105. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
A tidy little value on Bud Clark in slot 106, a step better than break-even. Nice player, but the depth chart did not need him here.
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing Drew Shelton in the 107th pick. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
DeMonte Capehart in pick No. 111 is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.