F
Arizona Cardinals
The Cardinals reached for Harvey and never recovered. Grade: F.
by fperki35 ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 28 picks
· 4 steals
· 20 reaches
Boards are made to be trusted, and the Cardinals shredded theirs for RJ Harvey. He came off 164 spots early, and the room will hear about it. The warnings were there, and the F is the bill.
The dealing is the wound this class cannot quite close. They banked enough surplus on Hairston to cover a lot of smaller sins.
There is no soft landing here; this class has to massively overperform just to matter.
Pick-by-Pick
They paid sticker price for Mason Graham in the Round 1 slot, and that is fine. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
A quiet steal in pick No. 33: Will Johnson for less than the market said. Useful body for a position without much behind the starter.
Donovan Jackson in pick 50 is fair value, right on his grade. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Kyle Kennard in No. 57 is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Eli Stowers at Round 3, Pick 18 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Danny Stutsman at slot 83 jumps the queue by a touch more than is comfortable. It fills a real need, too.
The board had cheaper options than Tahj Brooks at No. 98, and it noticed. The roster fit checks out.
A wild overpay on Antwaun Powell-Ryland in Round 3, Pick 35, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Jaxson Dart in the 111th pick is the kind of reach that only looks good if he outplays it. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
A big swing on Jack Bech at the 116th overall pick, well ahead of any board in the building. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Circle this one: Maxwell Hairston at pick 127 is a fall that decides a draft. It is more luxury than necessity; they were already set here.
They reached a country mile for Ricky White III at slot 148, and the board is aghast. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They reached into another round for Logan Brown, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Jasheen Davis at pick No. 155 is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Davin Vann at the Round 5 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.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Amari Kight in pick 171, miles early. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
A real head-scratcher, Jared Wilson in the 179th overall pick is miles ahead of his ranking. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Davison Igbinosun in slot 180 is early enough to raise a brow, if not a full objection. Nice player, but the depth chart did not need him here.
The board had Tory Horton higher than pick No. 186, and the wide receiver fell to them anyway. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Garrett Dellinger well ahead of where he belonged. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Value said wait; Ar'maj Reed-Adams in the 201st pick says they were not listening. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Alfred Collins. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
Nice patience on Antwane Wells Jr., who had no business lasting to No. 204. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
RJ Harvey in Round 6, Pick 32 is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
They talked themselves into Akheem Mesidor at pick No. 215, and the board did not agree. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
A market-rate linebacker, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Jeffrey Bassa. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Good price on Shilo Sanders in the Round 7 slot, a hair ahead of his grade with no real quibbles. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Fentrell Cypress II this early at pick 232. Pure best-available; the position was not exactly begging.