Full Cardinals Seven-Round Mock Draft

The Arizona Cardinals heavily address the defensive side of the ball in this mock draft.

Aug 31, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Georgia Bulldogs defensive lineman Mykel Williams (13) celebrates after a tackle with linebacker Chaz Chambliss (32) against the Clemson Tigers in the third quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images / Brett Davis-Imagn Images

It’s mock draft season and the Arizona Cardinals are ready to start planning a full-draft strategy for the upcoming 2025 NFL Draft. Arizona isn’t entirely out of the playoff picture yet, but they have a lot of work to do to get there.

It would be wise to begin preparing for a top 18 draft pick.

The 2024 Cardinals had success on both sides of the ball, but an influx of talent and youth is necessary to build off a successful season. Their primary need should be addressing the defensive side of the ball and the 2025 draft class is particularly deep in that area.

Arizona currently only possesses six picks for the upcoming draft, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Monti Ossenfort plays the board to get more capital. However, in these full seven-round mock drafts we play with what we’re given.

Six picks, including what is currently projected to be the 17th overall selection is the ammo we have and I think we added several starters along with some depth to push the guys ahead of them.

Let’s hop right into this bad boy and preview the gem of this draft class for the Cardinals:

17. Mykel Williams, Edge Rusher, Georgia 

Stop me if you’ve heard this before – the Cardinals' pass rush is overachieving thanks to great play calling from Nick Rallis and Jonathan Gannon. They truly have, with 36 sacks and counting. Myself, I believed this Cardinals team would have fewer than 20 sacks based off injuries and that’s clearly been wrong… but it’s not sustainable.

The Cardinals must add depth to the edge rusher spot, but they also need to find an ace to anchor the rush. Williams is a project in some eyes, but I am coming closer to the belief that he just needs a better scheme than what he has at Georgia, as insane as that sounds, plus some extra magic to be 100% healthy.

Williams is phenomenal and a near clone of former top-overall pick Travon Walker. The ceiling is just as high and I believe he could start his career ahead of where Walker was.

49. Darien Porter, Cornerback, Iowa State

The secondary is slowly gaining some confidence and the players that Arizona has are beginning to find some niche roles that have led to an overachieving unit. But like the pass rush, it isn’t sustainable unless some of these guys take massive strides in a year’s time.

I’m a fan of Starling Thomas to be the no.2 outside cornerback. Garrett Williams is elite at nickel. Max Melton is a terrific chess piece. But the Cardinals still need a no.1 guy on the boundary.

Insert Porter, a long-time player for one of the best secondaries in college football this season. His ridiculous size at 6’4 is intimidating for receivers to lineup opposing. Porter developed some ball skills this year with his three lone career interceptions and it feels like he’s only scratching the surface of his true potential.

81. Derrick Harmon, Interior Defensive Line, Oregon

Like we said about Iowa State’s secondary, Oregon’s defensive line was as good and deep if not better. Harmon was one of their top producers with five sacks in his first season with the Ducks, who had perhaps the best defense in all of college football.

The Cardinals need more depth at defensive tackle and it’s a position I expect to be heavily addressed in the offseason after failed attempts last offseason. Harmon, at 6’5 and 310lbs is a potential plug-and-play starter next to Dante Stills to give AZ a solid and young interior with some nice upside.

118. Kobe Hudson, Wide Receiver, UCF

The panic over Marvin Harrison Jr is way too loud; remember he is a rookie and needs time to adjust. Across from him, Michael Wilson has thrived as the Cardinals’ no.2 receiver. Now is the time to continue building depth for this team, as the room will be depleted in the offseason.

Hudson had a great season with a UCF team that leaned toward a running offense. In his five seasons with the Knights, Hudson collected just under 3,000 receiving yards to go with 23 scores between UCF and Auburn in his first two collegiate seasons.

Hudson is a well-rounded player that is perfect for building depth to this room.

152. Dillon Gabriel, Quarterback, Oregon

One of the most accomplished quarterbacks in this year’s draft class, Gabriel is a great late-round option to add to the quarterback room to push Kyler Murray. And unlike other attempts to get day three quarterbacks to compete, Gabriel has extensive experience and success that makes him different from those tries.

For starters, Gabriel played at three different programs over six years between UCF, Oklahoma, and Oregon and was successful at each stop with over 3,000 passing yards in ever season besides 2021, where he only appeared in three games prior to injury. Gabriel is one of college’s all-time passing yards leaders with over 18,000 passing yards with 153 touchdowns. There is also another 33 scores on the ground.

That kind of success doesn’t last this late, but given his capped ceiling and being a lefty, he’s available here. Again, Gabriel is a perfect choice to push Murray to play his best football.

246. Collin Oliver, Edge Rusher, Oklahoma State

Oliver had this season stolen from him due to an early season-ending injury. However, Oliver has accepted his invite to the Senior Bowl, which will medically evaluate the injury and check on his progress. A healthy Oliver is a big time difference-maker.

The former Oklahoma State Cowboy nabbed 23.5 sacks over his four seasons in Stillwater, which includes just a single sack in two games this season before injury. Oliver has spent time both off the edge and as a near full-time linebacker with great success, and if not for the injury he would be taken much higher.

If Oliver were to last this late into the draft, the Cardinals would be smart to quickly acquire his services. It’s certainly not ideal for two pass rushers, including third-year man BJ Ojulari to be working back from season-ending injuries, but the upside is too great to ignore this late in the draft.