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Dec 28, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; Arizona Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort watches from the sidelines against the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Cardinals GM: We Won't Shy Away From Big Trades

Originally posted on Arizona Cardinals on SI
By Richie Bradshaw | Last updated Feb 21, 2025 1:45 PM ET

Through two seasons of the Monti Ossenfort era, the Arizona Cardinals have shown they’re not shy about making trades to improve this roster.

Last season, Ossenfort made a move for edge rusher Baron Browning from the Broncos at the trade deadline to try and strengthen their pass rush.

We saw in the 2024 NFL draft how willing Ossenfort was to move up and down the board to acquire capital and positioning to add the players they wanted most.

So it shouldn’t come to a surprise when Arizona fans when their general manager publicly states that he’s not afraid to make a deal.

Cardinals Not Afraid to Make Splash

This morning on Arizona Sports 98.7's Bickley and Marotta show, Ossenfort said the Cardinals are willing to wheel and deal.

"I think that really depends on the situation. It depends on the player, it depends on the cost. I think we've shown that we're not adverse to trading picks for players," he said.

"We'll look into every avenue that makes sense and helps to improve our team and then you just have to make that decision. ... If the right situation presents itself, we won't shy away from striking."

Cardinals GM Monti Ossenfort to @Bickley_Marotta on if trading premium draft capital for an established star make sense this year:

"I think that really depends on the situation. It depends on the player, it depends on the cost. I think we've shown that we're not adverse to…
— Tyler Drake (@Tdrake4sports) February 21, 2025

The response was to whether or not the third year GM would be willing to move premium draft capital to acquire an established player.

The Cardinals have been linked off-season to several players both in free agency as well as trade talks. It’s an offseason in which we expect Ossenfort to be the most aggressive he’s been in his tenure in the desert.

Players such as Browns pass rusher Myles Garrett have publicly stated an interest for a new team. The Cardinals were instantly linked as a possible suitor for the former Defensive Player of the Year.

Garrett is far from the only player that has been linked to Arizona as a trade candidate and it’s likely that he won’t be the last throughout the offseason.

With one of the most important offseasons in recent history arriving for the Cardinals, now would be the time to make that splash move.

Although a quote like this does anything but guarantee that Arizona will make waves, it should stand out as a statement that the Cardinals will be aggressive… Which is all that we can ask for right now.

A strong start to last season ended ice, cold, and left fans, disappointed, and heartbroken. But what the team showed was the ability to play up to their competition and win football games. Naturally, the best way to continue doing that is to improve the roster.

I’ve said many times before that I don’t think this Cardinals team is too far away from contending. I believe a good draft class and a great free agency cycle could place the Cards in a position to play a full season and make a playoff push.

I’ve been asking for the Cardinals to be aggressive since last off-season. They didn’t do that last year, so as far as I’m concerned, that means that this is the off-season where it has to happen.

Based off of those comments, Ossenfort has come out and essentially said we are not afraid to do what it takes to make this roster better.

And that should get fans excited, even if they don’t make the move. Just knowing the Cardinals finally have a GM who is willing to do what it takes should bring some solace… At least for this offseason.

This article first appeared on Arizona Cardinals on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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