It has been about 24 hours – at the time of publishing this – since the 2024 NFL Draft concluded and every team came out of it by recruiting the next class of the league’s future with several picks each.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Some teams walked away with absolute steals like the Chicago Bears getting Washington WR Rome Odunze with the No. 9 pick, the Indianapolis Colts snapping up UCLA EDGE Laiatu Latu at No. 15 and the Philadelphia Eagles being able to land Toledo CB Quinyon Mitchell with No. 22. For others, there were severe reachs.
When examining the overall haul that the Arizona Cardinals brought in, there were some picks that will absolutely wow the fans and others who could prove themselves and defy preconceived notions that they may not be starting-caliber in the NFL.
Here is who Arizona selected at the 2024 NFL Draft:
Cardinals’ 2024 Draft Picks
Key: Click Names In Bold for individual player info
R1 | No. 4 – WR Marvin Harrison Jr., Ohio State
R1 | No. 27 – DT Darius Robinson, Mizzou
R2 | No. 43 – CB Max Melton, Rutgers
R3 | No. 66 – RB Trey Benson, Florida State
R3 | No. 71 – OT Isaiah Adams, Illinois
R3 | No. 82 – TE Tip Reiman, Illinois
R3 | No. 90 – CB Elijah Jones, Boston College
R4 | No. 104 – S Dadrion Taylor-Demerson, Texas Tech
R5 | No. 138 – DE Xavier Thomas, Clemson
R5 | No. 126 – OT Christian Jones, Texas
R6 | No. 191 – WR Tejhaun Palmer, UAB
R7 | No. 226 – Jaden Davis, Miami (Florida)
Even though Cards general manager Monti Ossenfort publicly stated that he would entertain offers for the No. 4 pick, he wound up staying pat and drafting arguably the best non-quarterback in the draft with Harrison Jr.
After identifying a massive need with a star receiver, the Cardinals further improved the defensive tackle room by going with Robinson. In the offseason, Arizona already signed Bilal Nichols, Khyiris Tonga and Chris Jones during free agency.
Nailing the first two picks they had, the Cardinals could have continued to roll as highly-touted corners Cooper DeJean and Kool-Aid McKinstry were both available with the No. 35 pick. Instead, Ossenfort traded back to the No. 43 pick and went with Melton. Time will tell if this decision will age well but when the decision happened, it was a head-scratcher.
With James Conner suffering injuries and him about to turn 29, Benson was as nailed-on of a pick as they could have gotten at 66th overall. Benson could be the backup running back going into next season, but has the ceiling to be Conner’s successor when that time comes.
Besides Christian Jones, all of the other picks were okay and can only have a huge upside from here on out. The Texas tackle put together a solid six-year college career, can play tackle on the left and right and possesses a skillset that can see him be a perfect fit on day 1.
As a whole, the Cardinals came away with a bonafide star in Harrison Jr. and others who could have the potential to become starters next season.
A year from now, it will be interesting to see how Ossenfort, the Cardinals scouts and others did when looking back at what transpired at the 2024 NFL Draft. Analyzing how the trades panned out will also be nothing but intriguing after this upcoming season.
All of the drafted players can showcase what they got as new Cardinals when the rookie minicamp officially begins on May 10.
Cardinals GM Monti Ossenfort reveals process leading up to drafting Marvin Harrison Jr.
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Alec Cipollini covers Phoenix Sports News for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on his X account, @AlecCipollini
