Cardinals' Top Late-Round Target Revealed

At this stage of NFL draft rumors, there's truly no definitive direction that the Arizona Cardinals are expected to take in the first round. Plenty of players' names are thrown around, with potential trade scenarios drawn up as well.

But GM Monti Ossenfort loves to find gems in the later rounds. The players available on day three are much more of a developmental process than first-rounders, but that's exactly what the Cardinals' new regime likes to do: develop young players.

Ossenfort has seemingly found solid players in the later rounds of his two drafts as general manager, but some of the names are much less known.

Pro Football Focus took a deep dive into late-round draft picks, and determined the best possible day-three fit for each NFL team.

For the Cardinals, PFF projects Arizona to address their offensive line, adding interior OL Luke Newman out of Michigan State University.

PFF explained their projection for the Cardinals:

"The Cardinals' defensive needs will overshadow their offensive line holes in the early rounds, but targeting a player like Newman in the late rounds could make for a savvy addition. Newman was the class' highest-graded player on gap-blocking concepts (80.2) in 2024, making him a natural fit for Arizona’s offense, which accumulated the most gap runs this past season."

A player like Newman almost certainly wouldn't be in the mix to start right away, and luckily that's perfectly fine for the Cardinals. Their offensive big men have put together a pair of excellent, cohesive seasons, helping RB James Conner barrel down the field to the tune of back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons, and a 4.6 yard-per-carry average.

Newman has upside in pass protection, and is solid in run-blocking, but is schematically limited for the time being. Of course, that can quickly change, especially considering how well Arizona's OL has gelled in recent years.

Alongside the future of the right guard position in Isaiah Adams, spending a late-round pick on a developmental guard who might be able to fill a depth role even as a young player could see some benfit for the Cardinals.

Day three is a forgiving place to make draft selections — Ossenfort could find a gem, but it won't affect Arizona's future if the pick doesn't pan out into a starting-caliber player.