Winners and Losers From Cardinals' Surprising Trade Deadline

The Cardinals failed to move off of both Budda Baker and Josh Sweat — arguably two of Arizona's top players on Nick Rallis' side of the ball. Arizona was facing the potential of selling both and fully hitting the reset button, which would have massively depleted the Cardinals' defensive talent.

Rallis — who was on the hot seat entering 2026 — keeps two established veteran talents, which should only help him down the stretch of the season. There's probably nobody happier than Rallis in the team's facility right now.

Loser: QB Carson Beck

Welcome to the NFL, rook! To be clear, the Cardinals were not expected to make any trades to acquire players ahead of the deadline, though the fact still stands that Arizona didn't make any efforts to try and rescue offensive talent for a unit that's pretty gashed across the board in terms of injuries.

Beck will be tasked to prove himself as a potential franchise passer with little around him to work with, and while that was the expectation, it's now official as the Cardinals can't make any trades.

To read our grades for Arizona's trade deadline, you can click here.

Winner: Monti Ossenfort — For Now

This trade deadline was going to tell us a lot about how Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort viewed his job security, as it was unlikely he'd offload stars in Baker/Sweat to get top draft capital for picks he didn't believe he'd be making. Why set up another NFL GM for success if you're the one falling on the sword?

By not trading star players to position themselves better for the future, Ossenfort clearly is trying to maximize this season — one that some believe was already on borrowed time. Now, the Cardinals (as much as they could be) are hoping to win as many games as possible, and now Ossenfort hopes his gamble of silence at the deadline pays off to lend himself another season.

Loser: CB Garrett Williams

Williams found himself in trade rumors after apparently being in Rallis' doghouse, who has played Williams for just nine total snaps in the last two weeks despite being healthy. Williams is effectively benched for Max Melton, Kalen King, Denzel Burke and Kei'Trel Clark, and with his status as a pending free agent, it's unlikely he gets significant playing time for Arizona moving forward barring injury.

A fresh start would have been best for a player once considered to be one of the top slot corners in the game to contribute elsewhere — though that now isn't on the horizon.

Can't Decide: Budda Baker

Budda Baker is destined for the team's Ring of Honor after he retires. He's been a steady and powerful presence for the Cardinals during some dark times. Quite frankly, he's played his way into deciding what happens with his future. He appeared to be open to a potential trade, but when the Buffalo Bills came calling with a reported strong offer, the Cardinals declined. Who exactly made the call remains unknown, though we're on the fence on how Baker fares here.

On the plus side, he gets to continue his legacy in Arizona while his placement likely means the Cardinals are willing to pay his $20.8 million cap hit. On the downside, Baker clearly won't be competing for a championship soon despite having the door opened for that possibility. His legacy is cemented in Arizona and most here would have cheered him on elsewhere.

Truly mixed feelings for Baker.