How Cardinals GM Monti Ossenfort Flipped The Script

Arizona Cardinals GM Monti Ossenfort is completely flipping the script on how the team drafts.

Arizona Cardinals GM Monti Ossenfort (left) and former general manager Steve Keim (right) / Donnie Druin (photos of Keim and Ossenfort belong to IMAGN - USA TODAY)

Former Arizona Cardinals general manager Steve Keim is likely the most controversial figure within the franchise over the last two decades.

Keim began his career with the team in 1999 as a regional scout and rose through the ranks until he was named the team's general manager in 2013, a spot he held until stepping down from the position at the end of the 2022 season.

In fairness, his tenure was not entirely devoid of success. He was named the NFL Executive of the Year in 2014 and the Cardinals advanced all the way to the NFC Championship game in the 2015 season.

As a general manager he gained a reputation for splashy offseason moves that often included trades, like the famous DeAndre Hopkins trade where Arizona received one of the game's best wide receiver for David Johnson, a second round and fourth-round pick.

These sorts of moves, known among fans as "Keim Time Specials" also often included acquiring aging players who had put together spectacular careers but were at the end of the road. Examples abound but include A.J. Green, JJ Watt, Terrell Suggs, and others.

In the draft, Keim scored some hits like Tyrann Mathieu and Budda Baker but had more than his fair share of bad decisions that cast serious doubts on his ability to evaluate talent.

One pattern noticeable in his drafting history was a tendency to go after small school players from non-Power4/5 conferences.

Many great players can come from smaller schools and it is not an infallible indicator of an athlete's future ability, however, there is truth in the generality that larger programs can target more talented players and have the resources to better develop them into future professionals.

Just going back to 2019, Keim drafted a total of eight players from G5/non-Power conferences.

Player and Draft Year	School
2019 - WR Andy Isabella	University of Massachusetts
2019 - WR KeeSean Johnson	Fresno State
2019 - OT Joshua Miles	Morgan State
2019 - DE Michael Dogbe	Temple
2021 - LB Zaven Collins	Tulsa
2022 - CB Christian Matthew	Valdosta State
2022 - DE Cameron Thomas	San Diego State
2022 - TE Trey McBride	Colorado State

Of these eight players, two remain with the team today and only one, Trey McBride, can be clearly considered a hit as he has turned into one of the best tight ends in the NFL over the past two seasons.

These eight picks represent a lot of draft capital, including a first round pick for Zaven Collins in 2021, for players that had not proven their talent against the best of the best in their college careers the same way that those from major programs in the SEC and Big 10 do on a weekly basis.

In essence, all of those picks were flyers in some capacity.

In the two drafts since Monti Ossenfort became the new general manager of the Cardinals in 2023, he has shown that he has a different outlook when approaching the draft.

Between the 2023 and 2024 drafts, Ossenfort has made 21 picks and only one was spent on a non-power player - which was spent on sixth-round pick Tehjuan Palmer out of UAB.

Every other player came from a major program in a major conference.

Again, where an athlete plays in college is not a guarantee of future athletic success. Most famously, Jerry Rice, the greatest wide receiver to ever play the game, came into the NFL out of Mississippi Valley State and other examples abound.

However, the number of players of that caliber can be counted on fingers and toes and when playing the game of drafting, it is generally smart to pull the majority of players from systems and conferences that consistently produce good athletes.

That is what the numbers say and praying to hit on a player of Rice's caliber from one of these small programs is not a consistently winning strategy.

So far, Ossenfort's draft picks have started an impressive youth movement in Arizona with several players already shining and showing great potential.

It looks like Paris Johnson, Jr. (Ohio State) is set up to be a long-term franchise left tackle. Garrett Williams (Syracuse) was one of the highest graded cover corners in the NFL in 2024. Michael Wilson (Stanford) is a talented No. 2 receiver with a good QB-WR connection with Kyler Murray.

Expectations are high for Max Melton (Rutgers) after a decent rookie season and he has all the intangibles required to become a great cornerback in the NFL. Even Dante Stills (West Virginia), a sixth-round pick from 2023, was the most consistent player in a terrible, injury-riddled defensive line unit last season.

It is clear that Ossenfort views the draft in significantly different terms than his predecessor and his vision of how to best use the capital available to him has, so far, been a welcome difference between him and Keim.

With some good, young pieces in place already it is now on Ossenfort to make some big decisions this offseason and provide the Cardinals a true chance at contention for 2025.

With only five picks in the upcoming NFL draft, it seems likely the general manager will continue in his pattern of targeting young, pro-ready athletes from some of the nation's biggest and most successful programs.