As a lead-up to the 2023 NFL draft, we've broken down the current depth chart of every NFL team and identified the biggest draft and team needs for the Arizona Cardinals.
You can find additional team-by-team draft needs articles and other draft content on our 2023 NFL Draft hub.
Who did the Cardinals pick in the NFL Draft?
The Arizona Cardinals selected Paris Johnson Jr. (OT, Ohio State) with the 6th pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
The Cardinals added BJ Ojulari (EDGE, LSU) with the 41st overall pick.
Arizona selected Garrett Williams (CB, Syracuse) with the No. 72 pick and Michael Wilson (WR, Stanford) with the 94th pick.
Cardinals Draft Needs: Top Positions of Need in 2023
- Defensive Line
- Offensive Line
- Defensive Back
What Picks do the Arizona Cardinals have in 2023?
The Arizona Cardinals have eight picks in the 2023 NFL Draft, including:
- Round 1 (3)
- Round 2 (34)
- Round 3 (66)
- Round 3 (96)
- Round 4 (105)
- Round 5 (168)
- Round 6 (180)
- Round 6 (213)
Arizona Cardinals Draft Capital Stats
Our Sharp Draft Value Rank is a valuation of draft capital based on a combination of average performance delivered and average dollars earned on second contracts.
This is based on two public models: performance delivered based on draft slot (the AV model created by Chase Stuart) and contractual earnings in non-rookie deals based upon draft slot (the OTC model created by Brad Spielberger and Jason Fitzgerald).
- Cardinals Sharp Draft Value Rank: 6 of 32 teams
- Cardinals AV Model Draft Value Rank: 5 of 32 teams
- Cardinals OTC Model Draft Value Rank: 6 of 32 teams
Arizona Cardinals Draft Value vs Other Teams:
The Cardinals' draft value is 32% higher than the league average of all 32 teams. Five other teams have more draft value entering the 2023 NFL Draft.
Arizona Cardinals Draft Prediction:
The Cardinals are predicted to draft Paris Johnson Jr. (OT, Ohio State) with their 1st-round pick (#3 overall) according to the most recent mock draft from Ryan McCrystal.
Another mock draft expert, Brendan Donahue, also has the Cardinals predicted to take Paris Johnson Jr. (OT, Ohio State) according to his most recent mock draft.
Arizona Cardinals Strength of Schedule, 2023
The Arizona Cardinals have the 12th hardest NFL strength of schedule for the 2023 NFL season.
Arizona Cardinals Offense: Depth Chart, Analysis & Draft Needs
Rich Hribar breaks down the offensive depth chart by position for the Arizona Cardinals, identifying areas where the team could improve in the upcoming 2023 NFL Draft.
2022 Arizona Cardinals Offensive Rankings
Quarterback Depth Chart, Cardinals:
- Kyler Murray
- Colt McCoy
- David Blough
- Jeff Driskel
The Cardinals are in a massive transition season and tearing down their roster with a new regime.
This rebuild does not come at the best time with Kyler Murray already off his rookie contract and coming off ACL surgery on January 27th, but they have a long-term commitment at quarterback already locked up.
2023 appears to be a tough season for Arizona on paper, and they will need more out of Murray moving forward on his contract than what they received in 2022 when he was healthy.
Out of 33 qualified quarterbacks for league passer rating, Murray was 17th in EPA per dropback (0.02) and 23rd in success rate (42.7%).
He posted early-career lows in yards per pass attempt (6.1 Y/A), yards per completion (9.1 yards), and touchdown rate (3.6%).
Murray particularly struggled to push the ball down the field last season, an area where he had previously had success.
On throws 10 yards or further downfield, Murray completed just 42.1% of his passes (28th).
His 40.4% success rate on those passes was ahead of only Carson Wentz, Kenny Pickett, and Zach Wilson.
On throws 20 or more yards downfield, Murray completed just 24.5% of his passes, ahead of only Jimmy Garoppolo.
Murray was just 1-of-14 (7.1%) on throws 30 or more yards downfield, the lowest rate in the league.
That 2022 performance was far off from his output in 2021.
In 2021, he completed 53.1% of his passes 10-plus yards downfield (sixth), 47.3% of his passes on throws 20 or more yards downfield (third), and 42.9% of his throws 30-plus yards downfield (fifth).
We may not get to see Murray correct his 2022 output to open the year as the start of the season brushes right up against the nine-month mark in his recovery.
If Murray is unable to start the season, it will be the third season in a row he will have missed time.
The Cardinals still have Colt McCoy to bridge any gap where Murray is unavailable.
McCoy has made six starts for Arizona over the past two seasons, with the team posting a 3-3 record.
There have been 58 passers to attempt 100 or more passes in the past two seasons, and McCoy’s 5.7 air yards per attempt rank dead last among that group.
His 6.6 Y/A ranks 41st while his 9.3 yards per completion rank 53rd.
A part of that is due to the previous system and the pass catchers available in those games, but McCoy is largely a caretaker while filling in as opposed to offering upside.
Running Back Depth Chart, Cardinals:
- James Conner
- Keaontay Ingram
- Corey Clement
- Ty’Son Williams
James Conner is a solid back when he is available, but that was once again an issue in 2022 when he missed another four games. Through six NFL seasons, Conner has now missed multiple games in each of those years.
A 28-year-old running back missing multiple games per season does not do Arizona a lot of favors, but Conner did close the season on a positive note in an offense that was overall lackluster.
Coming back from injury in Week 9 through Week 17 when he was last active in 2022, Conner was eighth in the NFL in rushing yards (582), seventh in EPA per carry (-0.00), and seventh in success rate per carry (41.9%).
Arizona can get out of the final season of Conner’s contract after this year when he carries an $8.5 million cap hit with $3 million of that dead cap.
If that does happen, the Cardinals will need something better beyond Conner than they did in 2022.
Non-Conner running backs turned 130 carries into 509 yards (3.9 YPC) with one touchdown last season.
Those running backs recorded a run of 10 or more yards on just 7.7% of those attempts, which was 29th in the league.
The team selected Keaontay Ingram in the sixth round last season, but he managed just 60 yards on his 27 carries as a rookie.
Arizona can use 2023 as a season where they ride Conner into the ground, but the depth here is wide open for improvement.
Wide Receiver Depth Chart, Cardinals:
- DeAndre Hopkins
- Marquise Brown
- Rondale Moore
- Greg Dortch
- Zach Pascal
- Javon Wims
- Auden Tate
- Andre Baccellia
We are not expecting DeAndre Hopkins to be in Arizona by the time the season starts as he has been shopped around this offseason.
By all accounts, Arizona will move him at some point even if he is not traded before or during the draft.
The team acquired Marquise Brown during the draft last season and immediately picked up his fifth-year option, which he is playing under this season.
Given the draft capital spent to add Brown, it should be assumed Arizona will work toward a contract extension.
They should want to do that sooner than later given how the market has moved at the position, but things have been quiet on that front.
Brown opened the season on a strong note while Hopkins was suspended.
Over the opening six weeks, Brown was fifth in the NFL in receptions (43) and seventh in receiving yards (485) with three touchdowns.
Over that span, Brown led the NFL in routes run (269) which inflated his counting stats, but he was 15th among all wide receivers in team target share (26.3%).
Brown then fractured his foot and missed the next five games. Kyler Murray was then injured the following week after he returned and everything fell apart in this offense.
Over the final six games, Brown caught just 24-of-43 targets for 224 yards and no touchdowns.
Over that span, 30.2% of Brown’s targets were deemed inaccurate due to the quarterback, which was the highest rate in the league.
Rondale Moore is in the third season of his rookie contract.
Moore showed some growth in his second season, but he only played in eight games after missing three games as a rookie.
In six fewer games, Moore had just eight fewer targets (56), 13 fewer receptions (41), and 21 fewer receiving yards (414) than he did as a rookie.
Moore went from a laughable 1.4 air yards per target as a rookie up to…5.5 air yards per target in his second season.
While that was still 137th out of 142 wide receivers to run 100 or more routes, Moore did see a significant improvement in targets.
60.9% of his targets as a rookie came behind the line of scrimmage while just 4.7% were in the intermediate area of the field.
In 2022, his target rate behind the line of scrimmage went down to 26.8% while his intermediate target rate rose to 14.3%.
Moore still has to answer whether he will ever be a traditional secondary passing option and needs to stay healthy for us to get a proper gauge on things with this new regime.
The team retained Greg Dortch this offseason, who enjoyed a subtle breakout last season.
After catching just three passes in his career before last season, Dortch caught 52-of-64 targets for 467 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
The downside is that Dortch’s involvement largely revolved around the availability of the other Arizona wideouts since he has a positional overlap with Moore.
Dortch ran just 55 pass routes in 2022 with Moore on the field.
The depth here is nearly non-existent.
The team added Zach Pascal in free agency, but assuming that Hopkins is traded, Brown’s long-term contract still isn’t inked, and Moore has questions about developing into a true WR2, wide receiver is once again a large picture need here for Arizona.
Tight End Depth Chart, Cardinals:
- Zach Ertz
- Trey McBride
- Noah Togiai
- Chris Pierce
- Bernhard Seikovits
Arizona has a pair of tight ends that are better than several other situations in the league.
They are unlikely to spend tangible draft capital on this group, but it does not mean that they are free and clear here.
Zach Ertz will turn 33 during this season, is coming off a torn ACL, and averaged a career-low 8.6 yards per catch last season.
Ertz is safe this season since his dead cap hit ($14.5 million) is higher than his actual cap hit ($12.6 million), but the Cardinals can get out of the final year of his contract next offseason while saving $8 million.
Arizona selected Trey McBride in the second round (55th overall) last offseason to be the inevitable replacement for Ertz.
Most rookie tight ends start slowly, and that was the case for McBride.
Among all tight ends to run 100 or more pass routes, McBride was 59th in target rate per route (12.3%) and 55th in yards per route run (0.84).
When Ertz was absent from Week 11 through the remainder of the season, McBride was 28th out of 38 tight ends in yards per route run (1.04) and 24th in target rate per route (15.5%).
Offensive Line Depth Chart, Cardinals:
LT: D.J. Humphries/Dennis Daley/Badara Traore
LG: Josh Jones/Elijah Wilkinson/Hayden Howerton
C: Hjalte Froholdt/Lecitus Smith
RG: Will Hernandez/Marquis Hayes/Lachavious Simmons
RT: Kelvin Beachum/Julien Davenport/Jackson Barton
Arizona has a plethora of needs, but it is possible none of them are larger than shoring up this offensive line.
The Cardinals were absolutely flooded with injuries across the line in 2022.
The only lineman to play in more than 13 games was Kelvin Beachum. By the end of the season, the most frequent offensive line combination for the Cardinals played just 18.8% of the offensive snaps, which ranked 29th in the league.
Only the Commanders, Bears, and Rams had a lower rate of usage out of their most frequent combination up front. All of those teams are also picking high this season (well, the Rams would have if they ever had a first-round pick).
Every player that took a snap at center in 2022 is no longer with the team.
Arizona signed Hjalte Froholdt from Cleveland, who is expected to compete for that vacant job and potentially push for snaps at left guard.
Froholdt played 353 snaps at center last season and another 230 at right guard for the Browns but graded out 62nd among all centers and guards per Pro Football Focus.
The only real quality player here is left tackle D.J. Humphries, who was 21st in pressure rate allowed (4.2%) last season.
The other players that took snaps at the tackle spots, Beachum and Josh Jones, were 50th and 68th in that department.
Jones is in the final season of his rookie contract.
Beachum signed a two-year extension this spring but only for $5.1 million in total. Beachum will turn 34 this June.
Arizona Cardinals Defense: Depth Chart, Analysis & Draft Needs
Dan Pizzuta breaks down the defensive depth chart by position for the Arizona Cardinals, identifying areas where the team could improve in the upcoming 2023 NFL Draft.
2022 Arizona Cardinals Defensive Rankings
Interior Defensive Line Depth Chart, Cardinals:
- Leki Fotu
- Rashard Lawrence
- Carlos Watkins
- Jonathan Ledbetter
- L.J. Collier
- Kevin Strong
- Eric Banks
- Manny Jones
Leki Fotu was on the field for 44% of the Cardinals’ defensive snaps but recorded a tackle on just 10% of his run snaps.
He’s currently the top interior defender on the depth chart.
Rashard Lawrence was a third-round pick in 2020, but he appeared in only 25 games over his first three seasons with five in 2022.
At least four of his 10 tackles were run stuffs last season. You can be encouraged by that rate or discouraged that there were just 10 tackles.
Carlos Watkins has the most experience on this line and signed as a free agent this offseason on a one-year deal.
L.J. Collier is another add this offseason after the former first-round pick disappointed with the Seahawks.
EDGE Depth Chart, Cardinals:
- Myjai Sanders
- Dennis Gardeck
- Cameron Thomas
- Victor Dimukeje
- Jesse Luketa
Three Cardinals had 20 or more quarterback hits last season. All three are gone.
The next highest Cardinal had five. That was Cameron Thomas, a 2022 third-round pick who played 21% of the defensive snaps.
Myjai Sanders was also a 2022 third-round pick, and he’s in line to be the team’s top edge rusher. Sanders played 23.3% of the defensive snaps last season and put up five quarterback hits.
Dennis Gardeck had a seven-sack season in 2020 and has one career sack outside of that year, which came in 2022.
This might be the thinnest positional group in the league.
Off-ball Linebacker Depth Chart, Cardinals:
- Zaven Collins
- Isaiah Simmons
- Kyzir White
- Krys Barnes
- Josh Woods
- Blake Lynch
- Ezekiel Turner
Few teams, if any, have used more resources at linebacker than the Cardinals.
Zaven Collins started to figure it out in run defense. He wasn’t a high-volume tackler — he only had a tackle on 11.3% of his run snaps — but 52% of his tackles produced a positive play for the defense.
He also won near the line. His 17 run stuffs tied for ninth in the league. He was also fifth in yards allowed per coverage snap at the position.
Isaiah Simmons found his way as he returned to the slot.
At 6-foot-4 and 238 pounds, he would be an enormous slot corner, but his athleticism allows him to play well there.
Simmons had 254 coverage snaps in the slot in 2022, 172 more than the next linebacker, per Sports Info Solutions. On those snaps, Simmons allowed 0.56 yards per coverage snap which would rank 11th among slot corners last season.
The Cardinals brought in Kyzir White after his year with the Eagles and Jonathan Gannon.
White was an effective tackler with a tackle on 21.1% of his run snaps and 58.2% of his tackles produced a positive play for the defense. He also had seven passes defensed.
If there is a position on this roster that won’t need additions, it’s this one.
Cornerback Depth Chart, Cardinals:
- Marco Wilson
- Antonio Hamilton Sr.
- Rashad Fenton
- Nate Hairston
- Christian Matthew
- Kris Boyd
Marco Wilson was 33rd among outside cornerbacks in adjusted yards allowed per coverage snap and played 70% of the snaps in his second season.
Antonio Hamilton was 19th in adjusted yards allowed per coverage snap.
This is a place where the Cardinals played better as a whole than the individual parts would suggest.
That was typically the case in the secondary under Vance Joseph. The question is will that be the case under Gannon or is more talent needed at the position?
Safety Depth Chart, Cardinals:
- Budda Baker
- Jalen Thompson
- Juju Hughes
- Josh Thomas
- Jovante Moffatt
Budda Baker has requested a trade, and if you’ve read all the way to this point, you’ll understand why.
Baker played 87% of the defensive snaps last season as he fought through injuries to stay on the field. He continued to be the bright spot in the Arizona secondary while splitting his time between the box and playing deep.
Jalen Thompson was a 2019 fifth-round supplemental draft pick and has played as the Cardinals’ deep safety whenever he’s been on the field.
He had eight passes defensed last season, which tied for second on the team. Thompson signed a four-year deal in 2022.
Depth here could be a help, especially if this team is looking at a 2023 season without Baker keeping everything together.
