D
Arizona Cardinals
The Cardinals bet the future on Sanders. The board says D.
by fperki35 ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 20 picks
· 3 steals
· 11 reaches
It is the swing that defines the weekend: Oronde Gadsden II in the 142nd overall pick, a good 105 spots before the room expected him. A weekend that fought the value and lost, hence the D.
Shedeur Sanders is the bet, and the class will be judged on how it pays off. They lost the exchange badly enough to drag the whole class down.
The Ramsey pick is the one they will point to when this weekend is judged. The future picks help the war chest more than the win-now roster.
In the end, a class the front office will want to grow past quickly.
Pick-by-Pick
In No. 6 they get a franchise quarterback at fair value. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
In pick No. 32 they get a disruptor off the edge, even if it was a touch early. Exactly the need they had to hit.
Emery Jones Jr. is a better player than the 39th overall pick suggests; smart patience, rewarded. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Kenneth Grant in Round 3, Pick 4 is the kind of reach that only looks good if he outplays it. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
A tidy little value on Dylan Fairchild in the Round 3 slot, a step better than break-even. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
A real head-scratcher, Kalel Mullings in pick 71 is miles ahead of his ranking. It fills a real need, too.
They reached a country mile for Antwaun Powell-Ryland at pick No. 96, and the board is aghast. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
They reached into another round for Jermari Harris, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. A minor itch, scratched.
A top-tier safety at a bargain, Kamari Ramsey in the 107th overall pick, plain and simple. It adds depth where they could use a little.
They paid sticker price for Trey Zuhn III in pick 108, and that is fine. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Jack Bech well ahead of where he belonged. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
A straight-up fair deal on Joshua Gray at slot 129, value and slot in agreement. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Oronde Gadsden II at No. 142 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
Jamon Dumas-Johnson in the 143rd pick is exactly on the number, no argument either way. The roster fit checks out.
Garrett Dellinger at pick 147 is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Jamaree Caldwell. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Shilo Sanders in pick No. 236, miles early. Depth on depth, at a spot that was hardly crying out.
Jimmy Horn Jr. at the Round 7 slot is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
A wild overpay on Que Robinson in slot 252, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
A cornerback of that caliber at the 253rd overall pick is the definition of value, full stop. Nice player, but the depth chart did not need him here.