2021 NFL Team Draft Page

The Cardinals recently made safety Budda Baker the highest-paid safety in the NFL, extending the Pro-Bowler for four years worth $59M.

The move nearly shores up the back end of a young and promising defensive unit. With Baker, second-year cornerback Byron Murphy Jr., and rookie linebacker Isaiah Simmons at the head, the Arizona defense now seems primed to become one of the better units in the league. An unmistakable hole remains in the secondary where a ball-hawking free safety would pair nicely next to Baker, who has yet to record an interception in the NFL. Still, the team should have enough cap room to address this next offseason with Patrick Peterson's enormous contract off its books and the probable retirement of Larry Fitzgerald and his $11M commitment.

What needed addressing in this mock draft was adding young talent to an offensive line that may lose some key pieces at the end of the upcoming season. With the possible departure of mauling veterans J.R. Sweezy and Max Garcia, now at the last year of their respective contracts, not to mention key reserves Kelvin Beachum and Justin Murray, the Cards will look to keep a premier offensive line in place to support HC Kliff Kingsbury's high-octane offense. Walker Little sure could use this extra year of development at Stanford, but his 6-foot-7, 309-pound frame and his athleticism and strength at the point of attack shows his potential. The team was lauded ("steal of the draft!!") for landing OT Josh Joses in RD3 in April, but maybe there was a reason for Jones' plunge. On Sept 1, it was reported that "Jones was never in the mix for the starting RT job", leaving the Cards scrambling for coverage. A look at the recent depth chart (Sept 8) however does in fact list Jones at starting RT opposite DJ Humphries. If Jones can show signs that he can develop into an elite NFL OT (well at least above average), we'll back off on OT as a Day 1 need in upcoming mocks.

In RD2 of this mock we're going interior OL with Cade Mays, who made 18 starts in his first two seasons at Georgia, and has the makings of a plug-n-play OG.

Make sure to visit DraftTek's new Arizona Cardinals Team Page to check out the entire mock draft roster. Team needs and historical draft picks are also provided.

- Dylan Rudolph, Cardinals Analyst

Twitter: @dyrudolph