NFL Draft: 3 Teams Cardinals Could Trade Up With

The Arizona Cardinals enter the 2025 NFL Draft with a handful of needs, particularly on defense, and a roster that could simply use some more juice across the board. If Arizona is hellbent on getting an elite player, they should be ready to make a move up the board.
The Cardinals currently hold the 16th overall selection, but just five more projected picks afterwards (pending compensatory selections). 16 is a good spot to be in to land quality players but not elite ones. It’s also a solid spot to be in should Arizona opt to move up the board and secure their guy.
A move inside the top five would be incredibly difficult given team needs. Still, there are a couple of teams inside the top 10 who may be willing to move down for extra picks and maybe a team or two that would like to move down for a better value or future ammo.
I have three teams in mind who make sense to move down with Arizona, as well as their potential and realistic targets with their new selection.
But before we get that far, here are five players I could envision the Cardinals moving up for that I believe will be gone before the 16th overall pick…
Players Cardinals Could Target in Trade-Up
- James Pearce, Edge Rusher, Tennessee
- Mike Green, Edge Rusher, Marshall
- Mason Graham, Interior Defensive Lineman, Michigan
- Will Johnson, Cornerback, Michigan
- Will Campbell, Offensive Tackle, LSU
Team No. 1: New York Jets
Pick: 7
The Jets are a weird team with a top 10 pick. They’re well out of play for a quarterback. They seem to have a plan for both of their offensive tackle spots. They could take an edge rusher, but Will McDonald broke out this season and Jermaine Johnson will return albeit off injury. Adding Mason Graham or Will Johnson makes some sense, but a trade down to secure another pick and perhaps a future selection could make some sense.
Gang Green has eight picks for this year’s draft with four inside the top 110, so they aren’t short on selections. But if they feel like a move down the board could result in some better value then it makes sense.
Team No. 2: New Orleans Saints
Pick: 9
The Saints need help all over the place and they’re not short on draft capital with 10 picks (five inside the top 110). However, the available talent at nine overall may not be what New Orleans is hoping for, making a slight move down a possibility.
The Saints need some order of a quarterback, wide receiver, offensive linemen, defensive linemen, and defensive backs. They could walk away from the draft addressing all of those spots, but they may find value moving down the board and then back up later to secure the guys they want.
You can never have too much capital as a rebuilding team, especially if it means having the ammunition to get who you want.
Team No. 3: Dallas Cowboys
Pick: 12
A healthy Cowboys team is playoff caliber, but they still aren’t ready for a true title run. A few upgrades to the offensive and defensive lines and at wide receiver would do wonders for a team that wants to compete but can’t quite get there.
A slight move down with Arizona won’t grab too much compensation, but they could turn that move down into future picks instead of this year (nine picks this year; three inside the top 10).
The swap would likely allow Arizona to secure a pass rusher before the Falcons get a chance to snipe them, and Dallas can get something for 2026.