We are a week into free agency and that can change how teams approach the NFL draft. With that in mind, Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar put together a new three-round mock draft with the moves in free agency factored in.
Because the Arizona Cardinals haven’t made many moves in free agency, it didn’t really change things for them.
In this mock draft, they do not make a trade back in the first round and they also do not go crazy and draft a receiver third overall.
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Round 1: Alabama EDGE Will Anderson
This is back to a normal projection and one that makes all the sense in the world.
I keep saying it. He might be a little undersized, but he has the requisite athleticism, motor and IQ, and he had insane production against the best competition in college football.
After his 17.5-sack 2021, he basically was doubled every snap in 2022 and still hit double-digit sacks.
This should be the easiest pick of the year. Take Anderson and feel happy.
From Farrar:
The Cardinals would probably love to trade down, but when the Colts traded with the Bears to move up to the No. 1 pick, that likely went right out the window. Everybody knows Arizona isn’t taking a quarterback, so they stay at three here. And with that pick, they get Alabama’s Anderson, who led the nation in sacks last season with 14, combined for 65 pressures (fourth in the nation against top competition), and put up 30 stops and had an interception for good measure. Anderson isn’t the “bendiest” or most flexible edge-rusher in this class, but he knows how to get the job done. The Cardinals, who lost J.J. Watt to retirement, Zach Allen to free agency, and have very little on the edge or the interior with which to disrupt opposing quarterbacks, should be perfectly happy with that.
Round 2: Florida OL O'Cyrus Torrence
The Cardinals have questions at left guard and center. Torrence could slide right in at left guard.
Round 3: Baylor DT Siaki Ika
Ika 6-foot-3 and 335 pounds. He had 24 tackles and two sacks last season.
The Cardinals need strength and size inside.
Round 3 (compensatory pick): Notre Dame S Brandon Joseph
Safety doesn’t seem like a big need but we don’t know what Jonathan Gannon and Nick Rallis will want long-term at the position.
He is 6-foot, 202 pounds. After three seasons at Northwestern when he had nine interceptions over his last two seasons there,he transferred to Notre Dame. He had 30 tackles, an interception that he returned for a touchdown and a forced fumble.
