National Media’s Laughable Cardinals Take Proves They Aren’t Watching

Giving the Cardinals an "F" for their draft haul can be argued, though personally it's probably a little harsh. General manager Monti Ossenfort certainly didn't win the draft but there were still some key additions.

Austin Mock made Arizona one of five teams with a failing grade, joined by the Jaguars, Bears, Seahawks and Texans.

"If you have followed me at all over the years, you're likely not shocked to see the Cardinals here (unless you actually expected them to have the worst grade)," wrote Mock.

"I have little doubt that Jeremiyah Love will be a good running back, but the Cardinals are in no position to get the most out of a back given the current state of their roster — they have issues on the offensive line and at wide receiver, and that's before we get into the conversation over who's starting at quarterback. I'm not saying this is going to be identical when the Giants selected Saquon Barkley at No. 2, but that's where my mind keeps going."

Coming from somebody who was very adamantly loud about not drafting Love with the third overall pick, I do understand much of the outlook on the roster construction. I'm still not a fan of making Love the highest paid at his position in terms of guaranteed money before he even registers a snap.

But even the most traditional football minds can look at the Cardinals' offensive line and see the improvement after signing left guard Isaac Seumalo and drafting right guard Chase Bisontis the very next round after Love.

While having all five spots nailed down would be preferred, having concrete starting jobs at four-of-five positions is an improvement in Arizona no matter how you slice it. If Elijah Wilkinson can even just be average at right tackle, the Cardinals should be just fine.

As far as the wide receiver spot goes, it's certainly not perfect but far from having issues like Mock suggests. Michael Wilson proved he could be productive when given the opportunity while Marvin Harrison Jr. still holds talent — and there's hope new head coach Mike LaFleur can maximize those talents.

There's also a Trey McBride at tight end, who seems to be pretty good at football and obviously helps the passing game out. Running the football at better rates in 2026 should also alleviate some of that pressure from a receivers room that also added Kendrick Bourne as well.

Should the Cardinals be planning a Super Bowl after their draft? Not quite, though some of the concerns and narratives driven by the national media aren't as strong as they'd lead one to believe.