The Arizona Cardinals’ loss to the Seattle Seahawks this past weekend signified that most likely, the franchise will miss this year’s playoffs despite eight games left on the schedule.
With this in mind, what to do with this roster, and what should happen in the off-season is now on everyone’s mind. Cardinals’ fans are used to waiting for next year.
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Right now, with a 3-6-0 record and getting knocked down further in the division standings, Arizona is slotted
to pick #11 in the April NFL draft. That will change between now and the end of the season, but it’s fun to see what players the team can select that certainly will be a position of need.
So, let’s go ahead and do a way-too-early mock draft. Here at ROTB, we aren’t smart enough to come up with our own, but we can borrow someone’s who is. USA Today Sports recently offered its latest first-round projection in the 2026 NFL draft.
Let’s see who they project for the Cardinals in Round 1:
- 1. Tennessee Titans: DE/LB Arvell Reese – Ohio State
- 2. New Orleans Saints: QB Fernando Mendoza – Indiana
- 3. New York Football Giants: WR Jordyn Tyson – Arizona State
- 4. Cleveland Browns: QB Ty Simpson – Alabama
- 5. New York Jets: QB Dante Moore – Oregon
- 6. Las Vegas Raiders: DE Rueben Bain, Jr. – Miami
- 7. Miami Dolphins: S Caleb Downs – Ohio State
- 8. Washington Commanders: DE Keldric Faulk – Auburn
- 9. Cincinnati Bengals: DT Peter Woods – Clemson
- 10. Los Angeles Rams (from Atlanta): OT Spencer Fano – Utah
- 11. Arizona Cardinals: OT Francis Mauigoa – Miami
USA Today stated this about Arizona’s pick:
“Arizona probably doesn’t need the 6-6, 315-pounder to haul in trick-play touchdowns like he did Saturday for the Hurricanes. Mauigoa’s brand of bully ball should make him sufficiently attractive for the Cardinals, with his stout protection also coming in handy to counter the NFC West’s many imposing pass rushers.”
Okay. Agreed that an offensive lineman is at the top of the draft pile going forward.
If Fano (6’-6”, 302 pounds) drops, or the Cardinals pick a little earlier, Fano is the cream of this year’s offensive tackles. LT Paris Johnson seems set, but is on his last year of this contract. Jonah Williams has been very disappointing at RT, so either Mauigoa or Fano could slide into his spot.
Maybe Williams can move to offensive guard if a new guy is drafted high? At Folsom High School in California and then at Alabama, all Mauigoa has played is tackle, so the transition would need some developing. Guard and tackle are so different. But Williams needs a replacement, and early in the draft should take care of the issue.
Mauigoa is the second-ranked offensive tackle in this year’s draft and is a natural right tackle. He has remarkable physical tools. His college coach stated that Mauigoa “has the most muscle density of any athlete that Miami has had.”
He can hit the second level pretty quickly and has exceptional anchor strength against bull rushers. A natural knee bender who plays with consistent leverage, and shows fluid hip mobility.
ESPN’s Jordan Reid stated regarding Mauigoa:
“Even though Miami’s Francis Mauigoa has played only right tackle over his career, every scout that I’ve talked to views him as a 6-foot-6, 315-pound guard at the next level. ‘I think he can be a high-level player on the interior right away,’ an NFC area scout responsible for the southeast region said. Everyone talks about positional value, but I think with the lack of high-end talent this year, he’ll easily go inside of the top 15 picks. Mauigoa showed off his movement skills Saturday in the victory over Syracuse with a 3-yard touchdown catch.”
Another tackle to consider would be Kadyn Proctor (6’-7”, 366 pounds) of Alabama. A word of caution, though. Guys who tip the scale over 335 pounds tend to get bigger going into their second season. Which means they get slower and depend upon their brute strength to get them by. They also have a tendency to get injured quite a bit from twisted knees and bad backs.
OT Dawand Jones was drafted in the fourth round by the Browns after a stellar career at Ohio State. He showed up at 367 pounds and stood 6’-8”. Always the first at the buffet and the last to leave. Jones played at both tackle spots and was really good – when he played. He is in his third season and has been on IR all three years. The knees and ankles just can’t take the sudden shift.
Another player for the 11th pick to consider is OG Olaivavega (Vega) Ioane (6’-4”, 330 pounds) of Penn State.
This kid would solve one of the guard spots for a decade. Penn State began playing him in his freshman year, and last season, he was the full-time starter and was named Second Team All-Big 10. He did not allow a single sack in 2024 and had the highest Pro Football Focus grade of all guards in the Big-10.
Ioane is dominating this year. He is a mauler on run plays and doesn’t move like a big guy, and is consistently a force to be reckoned with. He will become a plug-and-play guy from the beginning of training camp and can play either side. He has some center experience, so the versatility is there with a high work ethic. Loves to play the game.
If the Cardinals prefer to wait until the second or third round for an offensive lineman, with their first pick in the first round, they could decide upon Clemson CB Areion Terrell, OLB David Bailey of Texas Tech, or DE T.J. Parker of Clemson.
