D
Arizona Cardinals
A franchise passer in Penix Jr. headlines a D weekend for the Cardinals.
by bigal6755 ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 15 picks
· 2 steals
· 2 reaches
Every swap seemed to tilt away from the Cardinals, and the value they bled adds up to real damage. The board pushed back all weekend, and the D is the result.
Everything downstream of Michael Penix Jr. depends on Michael Penix Jr., and the building knows it. They are betting Murphy proves the room right and everyone else wrong.
The tight end hole is the one line item this class does not answer. Abrams-Draine at that cost is the sort of edge that compounds over a roster.
Add it up and it is a weekend the front office will hope everyone forgets, tight end very much included.
Pick-by-Pick
In slot 4 they get an anchor for the offensive line. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
Michael Penix Jr. at the 6th pick is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
A tidy little value on Amarius Mims in pick 26, a step better than break-even. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
They jumped the gun on Jonah Elliss, taking him earlier than his grade liked. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Gabriel Murphy well ahead of where he belonged. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
By-the-book stuff, Brenden Rice at pick No. 71 squarely in line with his ranking. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
They took Zak Zinter at par in No. 89, which is nothing to complain about. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Khyree Jackson in the 104th overall pick is exactly on the number, no argument either way. A minor itch, scratched.
Good price on MarShawn Lloyd in the 133rd pick, a hair ahead of his grade with no real quibbles. It fills a real need, too.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Cam Hart in pick 140. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.
Kris Abrams-Draine at the Round 5 slot is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. Pure best-available; the position was not exactly begging.
A clean, defensible pick in pick No. 185 with a little surplus value in Javon Baker. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
They paid sticker price for JD Bertrand in No. 188, and that is fine. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
They did well to land Steele Chambers in the 225th overall pick, just ahead of his grade. The roster fit checks out.
Somehow Jase McClellan was still sitting there in Round 7, Pick 7, and they pounced on premier running back value. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.