Cardinals Hint at NFL Draft Plans

The Arizona Cardinals enter the 2025 NFL Draft with six total selections - none greater than the 16th overall pick in the first round.

Moving into a critical third offseason under the regime of head coach Jonathan Gannon and general manager Monti Ossenfort, expectations of a postseason appearance are now legitimate after the Cardinals doubled their win total from 2023 to '24.

Arizona has done relatively well building through the draft in recent years and that should continue, mostly thanks to Ossenfort's ability to move up and down the board on all three days of the event.

That again could be the case in 2025.

Cardinals Willing to Move Up, Down in Draft

When speaking with reporters at the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine, Gannon made an interesting comment when asked if there's a difference in picking at 16 compared to higher draft picks they've made in previous years.

"No. Monti [Ossenfort] kind of sets the table with that, but whoever he says, 'let's do our homework on', I'm going to do my homework on. You never know how it's going to go," said head coach Jonathan Gannon at the Combine.

"We could be picking - I'm not going to put my foot in my mouth - you're picking 16 right now, it doesn't mean that's where we're going to be picking."

In Ossenfort's two drafts, the Cardinals have been no strangers to trading up and down.

In 2023, Arizona moved down from the third overall pick before jumping back into the top ten to draft Paris Johnson Jr. in the first round.

In 2024, the Cardinals unsuccessfully tried to move up in the late stages of the first round while moving down from their second-round pick.

Ossenfort was also asked about the difference in picking later in the order:

"Huge difference. I hope we continue to slide further back in the draft. That's why we're doing this. Certainly, a different feel for us this year going into this draft. Picking at three and picking at four, we could narrow down who was going to be sitting there for us," he said.

"It gets a little bit harder picking at 16. I think the importance of us staying flexible and just... hey, we have to wait and see what happens in front of us and then you have to wait and see what opportunities come your way. Those won't declare until a couple of hours into the event on Thursday night. It just adds a few more variables into what we've dealt with last couple of years."

It sure sounds like the Cardinals are open for business.