In 2011, the Arizona Cardinals selected a premier cornerback prospect out of Louisiana State University. Patrick Peterson, the fifth overall selection in that draft, is one of the best players in franchise history and will one day have his name etched into the stadium’s walls.
In 2022, the Cards may once again be shooting for the stars with another top LSU cornerback prospect. Derek Stingley, one of the highest-graded prospects in this year’s draft, recently worked out for the Cardinals’ defensive backs coaches at his pro day.
Sitting with the 23rd overall pick, it seems nearly impossible the team has any shot to land the star defensive back at their current position. However, being one of the nine teams to hold a workout with him certainly indicates a high level of interest.
For those that are unaware, the Cardinals were exploring a huge trade up in last year’s draft in Florida TE Kyle Pitts. There was a scenario in which he fell a few spots had Atlanta opted to select a quarterback with the fourth overall pick. A few sources had indicated the Cardinals’ interest in coming up.
This willingness to make a bold trade up for a prospect they covet could come into play here, albeit on a smaller scale. Stingley would likely need to fall out of the top ten for the Cards to consider a move up. With the team voicing their desire to extend cornerback Byron Murphy and faith in second-year pro Marco Wilson, it doesn’t seem like they’d mortgage the future for a cornerback prospect.
Stingley could end up falling due to a Lis Franc injury that limited him to only three games this season. That, and the rising draft stock of fellow cornerback prospects Ahmad ‘Sauce’ Gardner and Trent McDuffie could factor into Stingley sliding in the draft.
We will continue to explore possible draft day trades for the Cardinals as we get closer to the draft, but for now, there are a couple of important notes. First, the Cardinals do not pick until the sixth round following their third-round selection. They have used many of this year’s picks already (Ertz trade, Wilson trade up). Simply put, they don’t have a ton of draft capital without tapping into next year’s.
A trade up involving this year’s first (no. 23), third (no. 87) and a conditional 2023 first could get the Cardinals as high as pick No. 8. While that seems unlikely, they could move up that highly if they coveted a player like Stingley.
A more realistic scenario would be sliding up into the mid-teen range. Friday morning’s NFL.com mock draft 2.0 had Stingley falling as far as pick 16, which would be a very realistic striking range for the Cardinals. Pick 23 and 87 this year, with perhaps some additional smaller compensation from next year’s draft, would potentially be enough to slide up.
Think the Cardinals move up from 15 to 10 in the 2018 draft. They gave up a third-round pick and change to move up five spots, which is much higher than they’d be going up in this scenario.
There are two huge obstacles here. First, Stingley has to fall out of the top ten. Second, a team has to be willing to move back all the way to pick 23. Many teams won’t want to miss out on their top prospects going back that far.
Should the Cardinals be aggressive in their pursuit of the LSU standout? Or should they stay put and take best player available?
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