A-
Arizona Cardinals
Larceny in the 214th overall pick lands the Cardinals a A-, Bassa and all.
by Stan93 ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 58 picks
· 29 steals
· 11 reaches
Somewhere a general manager is explaining how Jeffrey Bassa got past him. The Cardinals do not have to explain a thing at pick No. 214.
The cost of the Roberts reach is exactly the players who went right after him. The phones were where this weekend was really won. The veteran additions, Drake Maye chief among them, give the class a floor the rookies alone would not.
The roster is better shaped than it was, with quarterback chief among the fixes.
The kind of weekend a front office frames and hangs on the wall.
Pick-by-Pick
In No. 1 they get a sticky cover corner. More want than need.
Ashton Jeanty at the 2nd pick is right where the board had him, plain and simple. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
In pick 3 they get a cornerstone up front at fair value. Exactly the need they had to hit.
No edge and no loss on Tetairoa McMillan in Round 1, Pick 4; it is a wash and a sensible one. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
In pick No. 5 they get a wrecking ball inside. A clean fit for the roster.
In slot 6 they get juice off the edge at fair value. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
Princely Umanmielen in the Round 1 slot is exactly on the number, no argument either way. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
In the 8th overall pick they get a disruptor off the edge, even if it was a touch early. The biggest hole, addressed.
In the 17th overall pick they get a coverage-and-run second-level piece, reach and all. A real need, handled.
Walter Nolen in pick 33 is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Emeka Egbuka at pick No. 34 is a sound buy, the sort that quietly helps a class. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
They let Kenneth Grant come to them and pounced at slot 35. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
Tre Harris slid further than he should have, and the 37th pick is lovely value for the wide receiver. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
A market-rate offensive lineman, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Josh Conerly Jr.. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Colston Loveland in No. 39 is fair value, right on his grade. A need, and now a little less of one.
They paid up for Aireontae Ersery at the Round 2 slot when waiting would have done the job. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Jihaad Campbell at Round 2, Pick 16 is money in the bank, a linebacker taken below his worth. It fills a real need, too.
A straight-up fair deal on Tyleik Williams at the Round 2 slot, value and slot in agreement. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
A quiet steal in slot 65: Dylan Fairchild for less than the market said. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Alfred Collins in the 66th overall pick. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
Barrett Carter at pick 67 is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Fair-plus on Ashton Gillotte, a quiet win that adds up over a draft. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
You do not let a tight end like Tyler Warren reach the 70th pick and blink. They did not. The roster fit checks out.
No drama and no debate, Mikail Kamara went about where he belonged in No. 71. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Donovan Jackson in pick No. 72 is the kind of reach that only looks good if he outplays it. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
A reach for Jake Majors in the Round 3 slot; a little patience would have been rewarded. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Good price on Omarr Norman-Lott in No. 81, a hair ahead of his grade with no real quibbles. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Danny Stutsman in the 92nd overall pick is fine work, a shade of surplus and no downside. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Tez Johnson at pick 93 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Aeneas Peebles is a better player than the 95th pick suggests; smart patience, rewarded. The roster fit checks out.
A running back of that caliber at slot 102 is the definition of value, full stop. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
The board had cheaper options than Dillon Gabriel at Round 4, Pick 2, and it noticed. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
They took Luke Kandra at par in slot 104, which is nothing to complain about. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
They liked Hollin Pierce enough to skip the value, taking him in the Round 4 slot. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Jaeden Roberts this early at pick 106. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Deontae Lawson at the 107th pick is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Kaleb Johnson at No. 108 is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. A need, and now a little less of one.
Ozzy Trapilo in Round 4, Pick 16 is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. 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 Jake Slaughter. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Jack Bech in pick No. 129 is a gift, value that borders on unfair. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Smael Mondon Jr. in No. 134 should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
They barely believed it either: Chris Paul Jr. still on the board at slot 140. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Jaxson Dart at Round 5, Pick 14 is the sort of value that quietly wins a weekend. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
They robbed the room for Lathan Ransom here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
Somehow Evan Stewart was still sitting there in the Round 5 slot, and they pounced on premier wide receiver value. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
They will replay Jay Higgins at the 203rd pick for years; that is how good the value is. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Circle this one: Joshua Gray at the 207th overall pick is a fall that decides a draft. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Jeffrey Bassa at pick No. 214 is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. It fills a real need, too.
Steal is underselling it; Eli Stowers at slot 216 is a heist with the alarm still ringing. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
The board fumbled Michael Taaffe all the way to the 217th overall pick, and they scooped it up. Depth on depth, at a spot that was hardly crying out.
Taking Cam Skattebo in the 218th pick is close to grand larceny; a running back that good had no business lasting this long. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
A top-tier wide receiver at a bargain, Theo Wease Jr. in the Round 7 slot, plain and simple. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Value with a capital V on Miles Frazier in Round 7, Pick 9, a genuine coup. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Circle this one: Seth McLaughlin at pick 230 is a fall that decides a draft. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
A offensive lineman of that caliber at pick No. 235 is the definition of value, full stop. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Karene Reid at No. 243 is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
You do not let an offensive lineman like Jared Wilson reach pick No. 245 and blink. They did not. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing Brady Cook in the 256th pick. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.