Will Arizona Cardinals' First-Rounder be a Bust?

The Arizona Cardinals have added a great deal of talent to their roster in the offseason, which can distract from the fact that much of Arizona's success in the 2025 season will depend on how well some of their in-house talent can take a jump to the next level.

The Cardinals have already drafted players with plenty of potential in the first few years of the Monti Ossenfort regime. Some have shown more encouraging signs of development than others.

But the dreaded "bust" label is one that can affect even some of the most sure-fire selections, and some of the best-looking players at the college level.

Arizona Cardinals DL Darius Robinson Has Pressure to Prove Himself

According to Bleacher Report's Matt Holder, 2024 first-round DL Darius Robinson has some pressure to avoid such a label. Here's why:

"Darius Robinson's rookie season got off to a rough start as a calf injury at the end of training camp forced him to begin the campaign on injured reserve.

"The 2024 No. 27 pick wasn't activated until about halfway through the Arizona Cardinals' schedule, resulting in him only playing in six games.

"So, it makes sense why the Missouri product didn't record any starts a year ago. On top of that, he only participated in 183 defensive snaps, per Pro Football Reference, and had underwhelming production with just one sack and 10 total tackles.

"While the lack of playing time in year one can be chalked up to the injury, the bigger problem moving forward is that Robinson faces even more competition to crack the starting lineup," Holder wrote.

When examining the circumstances surrounding Robinson's rookie year, it's very easy to justify the lack of results. HC Jonathan Gannon has referred to the upcoming 2025 season as Robinson's "year 1.5."

But the NFL is a results-based business, and understandably so. It's not that Gannon nor Ossenfort have no faith in Robinson, but they brought in talent to fill roles they had hoped Robinson would build, and did so with significant resources allocated to their DL.

"The Cardinals set out to revamp their defense this offseason, especially in the trenches. Among their moves was signing veteran defensive lineman Calais Campbell and using a first-round pick on one of the better interior defenders in the 2025 draft class, Walter Nolen III," Holden continued.

"Campbell might be 38 years old, but he is still playing at a high level, finishing last season with the highest run defense grade from Pro Football Focus (85.9) at the position and recording five sacks. Meanwhile, Nolen was the second-ranked interior defender and 14th player overall on B/R's final big board during this past draft cycle.

"That points toward Robinson being more of a backup again during his second season."

Robinson may not be as pure of a "backup" as Holden claims, but the now-crowded front seven group will provide fewer opportunities for Robinson. But that may be perfectly fine. Gannon loves to rotate his players — even some of the most obvious every-down starters.

Robinson may truly benefit from seeing a reduced, yet important role. The physical skills, the work ethic and the overall talent is all there, he just needs a healthy, tragedy-free season to find his rhythm alongside a group of DL that will actually be able to offer him support in his development.

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