The Cardinals are not expected to be very good in 2023. But they’re positioning themselves for a big rebuild to start in 2024.
Arizona has acquired significant capital in the 2024 NFL draft after a couple of trades they’ve made so far in the 2023 draft.
The big one took place on Thursday night, when the Cardinals and Texans made a trade that resulted in the Cardinals getting the Texans’ first-round pick and third-round pick in 2024. The Texans badly wanted their guy, Alabama pass rusher Will Anderson, and so they paid a fortune to get him.
The Texans aren’t expected to be very good in 2023 either, and it’s entirely possible that the Cardinals will have two Top 5 picks in 2024, their own and the Texans’.
And then on Friday night, the Cardinals added the Titans’ third-round pick in a trade down that allowed the Titans to draft quarterback Will Levis. So the Cardinals have three third-round picks, their own, the Texans’ and the Titans’ and all of those could easily be early in the third round.
The Cardinals are also projected to have a 2024 fourth-round compensatory pick for losing defensive end Zach Allen to the Broncos. So that’s two first-round picks, one second-round pick, three third-round picks and two fourth-round picks for the Cardinals in 2024.
New Cardinals General Manager Monti Ossenfort and head coach Jonathan Gannon have a lot of work ahead of them, taking over a roster that is in rough shape with a quarterback in Kyler Murray whose surgically repaired knee may not be healthy for the start of the season. But they’re loaded in the 2024 draft.