Way Too Early Cardinals 53-Man Roster Projection

The Arizona Cardinals' final roster could look like this.

Nov 12, 2023; Glendale, AZ, USA; Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray (1) makes 2023 debut against the Atlanta Falcons at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rob Schumacher-Arizona Republic / Rob Schumacher/The Republic / USA TODAY

ARIZONA -- The Arizona Cardinals are weeks removed from training camp at State Farm Stadium, a sight that will be welcomed after another long offseason of rumors, reports, speculation and all the other fun stuff that keeps us busy when football isn't around.

Over the course of OTA's we saw players rise up the unofficial depth chart while others remained on the sideline. Soon, the roster will be required to drop from 91 to 53.

Here's a quick glimpse of what that could look like using last year's numbers at each position for a template:

---

Quarterback

• Kyler Murray
• Desmond Ridder

The Cardinals carried two quarterbacks last year and can also elevate an emergency quarterback off the practice squad without having them be on the 53-man roster, effective starting this season.

Kyler Murray is the obvious choice while the Cardinals clearly wanted a boost in their quarterbacks room after trading for Desmond Ridder.

Clayton Tune is the odd man out here simply due to Ridder being the more experienced/polished out of the two. In this scenario where Tune is left out, I'd expect him to be re-signed to the practice squad.

---

Running Back

• James Conner
• Trey Benson
• Michael Carter

The Cardinals initially kept three running backs last season and if they're simply going off talent alone, it will be the names listed above.

As we previously discussed - however - are the Cardinals wanting to pay their RB3 $3 million heading into 2024? Cap space is aplenty in Arizona, but if the Cardinals are still looking to shed some extra salary, DeeJay Dallas makes the roster thanks to his special teams acumen.

---

Wide Receiver

• Marvin Harrison Jr.
• Michael Wilson
• Zay Jones
• Greg Dortch
• Chris Moore
• Zach Pascal

After the top four receivers, your guess is as good as mine for who will make the roster.

The Cardinals kept six total guys at the spot last season, so we opted for free agent signing Chris Moore and veteran Zach Pascal for the time being.

There's ample room for young guys such as Xavier Weaver or Tejhaun Palmer to prove their value in training camp, and if neither of those two make the final cut, both should be back on the practice squad

---

Tight End

• Trey McBride
• Tip Reiman
• Elijah Higgins
• Blake Whiteheart

There's not a lot of room for discussion here after McBride/Reiman/Higgins, which could honestly be the lone three tight ends on the initial 53.

Arizona carried one extra last season and that was Whiteheart, so he's again the leader in the clubhouse.

Offensive Line

• Paris Johnson Jr.
• Evan Brown
• Hjalte Froholdt
• Will Hernandez
• Jonah Williams
• Kelvin Beachum
• Isaiah Adams
• Christian Jones

The starting five feels all but practically set, so the remaining three names is a crapshoot.

Beachum is the veteran swing tackle while draft picks Adams and Jones have versatility to their game.

This was tough, as there's not a ton of guard depth here on top of no legitimate center behind Froholdt. That should be Jon Gaines, though he will be limited in some capacity at training camp as recovers from a knee injury that kept him out all of his rookie season.

---

Defensive Line

• Darius Robinson
• Bilal Nichols
• Justin Jones
• L.J. Collier
• Dante Stills
• Khyiris Tonga
• Ben Stille

The Cardinals rotate their defensive line heavily, so they'll need every person to contribute from top to bottom, making this a tough position group to frame.

Arizona will need a blend of guys who can play across different spots along the line, and that's practically what they have in their top five with Tonga (beefy DT) and Stille (DE) supplementing their roles.

---

Outside Linebackers

• Zaven Collins
• BJ Ojulari
• Dennis Gardeck
• Victor Dimukeje
• Cameron Thomas
• Jesse Luketa
• Xavier Thomas

The Cardinals opted to not massively upgrade their room of outside linebackers, which will be interesting to monitor as the season plays out.

---

Inside Linebackers

• Kyzir White
• Mack Wilson
• Krys Barnes
• Owen Pappoe
• Markus Bailey

White and Wilson should be fun to watch in the interior this season. This is similar to the outside linebacker room where most familiar faces are brought back.

---

Cornerbacks

• Sean Murphy-Bunting
• Max Melton
• Garrett Williams
• Elijah Jones
• Kei'Trel Clark

This was extremely tough to figure out the bottom two guys, and though we're using the position numbers from last season, the Cardinals just might keep an extra name at this position.

---

Safety

• Budda Baker
• Jalen Thompson
• Dadrion Taylor-Demerson

Andre Chachere is a quality backup, but the rookie Taylor-Demerson has impressed with his range in the secondary thus far and could very well be the next man up if needed in action.

---

Specialists

• Matt Prater
• Blake Gillikin
• Aaron Brewer

Running it back with the same crew here. Special teams. Special plays. Special players.

Make sure you bookmark All Cardinals for the latest news, analysis, updates and much more!

• Paris Johnson Sets Massive Goal
• Cardinals Urged to Trade Star Safety
• Where Cardinals OL Ranks in NFL
• Two Moves Cardinals Should Still Make
• Cardinals Training Camp is Almost Here
• Trey McBride is Top 5 TE in Rankings