The Arizona Cardinals are fighting to keep some sort of respect for them in the 2025 season and moving forward.
It seems to be harder to do week-to-week.
That is what happens when the last three games against
your division rivals are a combined 130-61. That is three games where the average score is 43.3 to 20.3.
Yet, they didn’t gain any ground in the 2026 NFL Draft spots yet either, which is not ideal when you are 23 points worse than everyone in your division.
So, things couldn’t get worse, right?
As my good friend Blake Murphy says, it can always get worse.
Now, this is not to say that this will happen, this is a very, very early 2026 NFL Mock Draft scenario from a buddy of mine Trevor Sikkema from PFF, but it also seems like as good as this is for the Arizona Cardinals on their end, it would be less than ideal from a gaining ground in the division.
From PFF:
- Los Angeles Rams via trade with New York Giants -Fernando Mendoza, QB, Indiana
- Las Vegas Raiders – Dante Moore, QB, Oregon
- Tennessee Titans – Arvell Reese, Edge, Ohio State
- Cleveland Browns – Jordan Tyson, WR, Arizona State
- New Orleans Saints – Rueben Bain Jr., Edge, Miami
- Washington Commanders – Cashius Howell, Edge, Texas A&M
- New York Jets – Makai Lemon, WR, USC
- Arizona Cardinals – Francis Mauigoa, OT, Miami
I love Mauigoa, he is a mauler, but shows a lot in pass pro already, so that makes him an ideal fit with the Arizona Cardinals and gives them potential bookends for the next 6-8 years.
So, why is this a nightmare scenario? Well, the Rams are able to parlay their trade with the Falcons into the heir apparent from Matthew Stafford.
My take on this class of quarterbacks is not important. What I do know is that any quarterback going into McVay’s system is going to be a problem. Now they get to learn from Stafford, while getting coached by McVay, and growing in a system that already has maybe the best offense in the NFL.
Meanwhile, the Cardinals are trying to just find guys that can help them not be 23 points worse than all teams in their own division.
Mauigoa would be an amazing pick. How much closer would his addition get this team to competing though?
