The Arizona Cardinals can go a lot of ways in this year’s NFL draft. Many consider their biggest needs to be cornerback and offensive line. In Pro Football Focus’ latest two-round mock draft, it is those two areas the Cardinals address.
In the first round, they select Alabama cornerback Patrick Surtain II, which would be a fantastic selection. He fits the bill as a potential lockdown cornerback in man coverage and he played against the best competition both in practice and on the field against the SEC.
There is really no downside to this selection.
He allowed less than 15 yards in coverage in exactly half of his games played, and he never allowed any more than 60 in one outing. Perhaps the most underappreciated aspect of Surtain’s game this past year was his discipline, as didn’t draw a single penalty.
In the second round, the Cardinals select Notre Dame tackle Liam Eichenberg, “who has an extremely high floor.”
Here is where this pick gets interesting. The Cardinals selected tackle Josh Jones in the third round last year and couldn’t believe he was available. Had the Cardinals had a second-round pick, he would have been their selection then.
He played left tackle all through college and learned right tackle this past year as a rookie. This mock draft suggests that the Cardinals could slide Jones inside to right guard to make room for Eichenberg.
That is an odd suggestion. Jones has the length and is more athletic than Eichenberg, which is one of the knocks on the Notre Dame lineman. He isn’t that quick on his feet.
It would be hard to believe that the Cardinals would move Jones from right tackle to guard when his length and athleticism are perfect for the edge.
If anything, it would perhaps be Eichenberg who slides inside at least for a year. The Cardinals can potentially move on from D.J. Humphries after 2021 and, if Jones and Eichenberg both are able to start at tackle, it would save the Cardinals money.
Given the players on the board still in this particular mock draft, going with a pass rusher an interior lineman like Ohio State’s Wyatt Davis or Oklahoma’s Creed Humphrey would make more sense. That way, there aren’t two players making a position change to start for the Cardinals.
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