Cardinals' Biggest Winners During 2025 NFL Draft

Linemen With Expiring Contracts

I know this one feels like I'm cheating bit, but there are a couple of guys who fit for this slot and are part of the same unit.

Throughout the offseason, Jonah Williams has been a player talked about as a potential trade candidate.

He didn't play much during his first year with the team. They were fine without him. He carries a pretty big cap hit for 2025 at around $16 million.

It's also the last year of his deal.

All of that could have led the team to look for a tackle as early as round one.

They didn't draft one at all, so his spot on the team is safe.

However, he wasn't the only offensive lineman with an expiring contract whose standing with the team was dependent on the draft.

Evan Brown was re-signed on a one-year deal this offseason, which seemed to set him up as one of the team's starting guards again for the 2025 season.

However, he needed to dodge competition at his position even more than Williams.

He wasn't able to entirely evade competition as the team took Hayden Conner in round six. However, that shouldn't be a problem for him during the coming season.

If they don't make any more moves this offseason, the Cardinals' starting offensive line will consist entirely of returning players from last season.

Nick Rallis

There probably isn't anybody in the Cardinals' organization who is happier than Nick Rallis after this year's NFL Draft.

The offseason had already been going pretty well for him.

The team had added Josh Sweat, Dalvin Tomlinson, and Calais Campbell to strengthen their front seven.

In the draft, they continued to improve on defense.

The first round saw them add Walter Nolen as a potential day one starter at defensive tackle to complete an overhaul of the position.

Then they got an absolute steal in round two. Will Johnson was once seen as a top-ten prospect during the pre-draft process. The Cardinals landed him at pick 47.

His addition addresses a cornerback problem that made the position one of the team's biggest needs heading into the draft.

From there the team proceeded to load up on defensive depth throughout the rest of the draft.

The defense was disappointing in 2024.

Now Rallis has all kinds of new talent to work with in 2025.

The draft was a great three days for him.

Trey Benson

Before the draft, I listed Trey Benson as one of the Cardinals players with the most to lose during the draft.

The Cardinals didn't give him many touches during his rookie season, this year's running back class was loaded with talent, and the team had met with a few RBs during the pre-draft process.

The one offensive selection the team made did not end up coming at the running back position.

That should men Benson's spot as the team's RB2 behind James Conner is secure for the 2025 season. It could also mean they still expect him to be the running back to take whenever they move on from Conner in the future.

The team's focus on defense could also be good news for Benson.

If the Cardinals are planning to win lower-scoring games in 2025, the will likely mean leaning even more on the run game, which would mean more touches to go around at running back.

With no new RB on the roster, Benson can expect to see his role grow next season and his job should be safe beyond that. That has to be a pretty good feeling after a draft where it seemed like his role with the Cardinals could be in some trouble.