Cardinals Aren't Leaving First Round Without WR

The Arizona Cardinals know exactly what their offense and Kyler Murray needs.

ARIZONA -- The Arizona Cardinals have heavy speculation surrounding their No. 4 overall pick with less than a week to go until the 2024 NFL Draft, as general manager Monti Ossenfort could either opt to stick and pick a cornerstone player for the future or move down the draft board in exchange for what's assumed to be some hefty draft capital.

Arizona settled a handful of their needs in free agency, though one glaring hole still remains on the roster at wide receiver following the departures of Rondale Moore and Marquise Brown.

Quite honestly, the Cardinals would have likely targeted a receiver even with those two names still on the roster. Yet their absence transformed that thought from an option to a necessity in leaving the first round with either Malik Nabers, Marvin Harrison Jr. or Rome Odunze.

Arizona could very well stick at No. 4, make things easy and take Harrison. Hell - the jerseys might have already been printed for months. Kyler Murray needs an elite weapon and Harrison fits the rare bill of being the best player available while also supplementing a team's top need.

Yet Ossenfort knows this might be the last time Arizona can exchange an early pick for a massive haul - the team's reported asking price to move out of the top ten is three first-round picks.

The Cardinals are far more than just one receiver away from making a postseason push, and if a team is willing to bite on that price tag, Arizona's willing to play ball.

The Cardinals aren't naive, however. To let one of the top three wideouts - all who are expected to be gone before the top ten concludes - slip from their grasp wouldn't quite be ideal.

That's why Arizona (in a perfect world) would execute a potential trade back up into the top ten to select their wide receiver of choosing - very similar to what they did in the 2023 NFL Draft when they maneuvered the board to snag Paris Johnson Jr. at No. 6.

NFL insider Field Yates says people around the league believe Arizona wants another deal in place - if they do opt to trade down - to ensure they can leapfrog teams again and get one of the top consensus wideouts:

"One idea that people around the NFL have bandied about with me is whether the Cardinals would want to ensure they have a trade back up the order set after a trade down. For example, if they moved down from No. 4 to No. 11, they might want to have a move from No. 11 back into the top 10 in place. The reason? While there is great depth in this wide receiver class, moving outside the top 10 picks will likely cost Arizona any shot at Harrison, Nabers or Odunze." - Field Yates

Yates isn't the only insider to suggest Arizona's desire for a wide receiver is strong.

"If I had to put money on it today, I would say [Cardinals] stay pat at No. 4 and take Marvin Harrison," Ben Allbright said on the PHNX Cardinals pocast.

"They're open to a trade - Monti [Ossenfort] is always open to a trade. Always. Always. Always. But I kind of feel like they'd like to pick [at No. 4]. If they trade - I don't think they want to trade very far," added Ian Rapoport on Fox Sports 910.

Harrison is the most coveted asset for Cardinals fans, but it's unknown if Arizona has him as WR1 on their board over Nabers as some other NFL teams do:

"There are NFL teams that simply prefer LSU wide receiver Malik Nabers in a vacuum over Ohio State's Marvin Harrison Jr. There just are. But ultimately, it's not a matter of whether Harrison or Nabers is viewed as the better player by the majority of the league -- it's a matter of which team will begin the wide receiver run at the draft, because it only takes one. My sense is that if Harrison goes ahead of Nabers -- even by just one spot -- there will be people in the court of public opinion who'll dismiss that the chatter was ever even real. I'm here to say it is real," said Yates.

All of Harrison, Odunze and Nabers bring different things to the table. If Arizona has all three closely graded, it makes sense to drop down, acquire more draft picks and still get a WR1 for the future - if they can pull it off of course.

It's not often teams can have their cake and eat it too, which is why fans are justified in simply wanting the organization to stay at No. 4.

Time will ultimately tell if the Cardinals do make the leap out of the top ten, but Arizona sounds very convinced on landing a top-flight receiver that can help transform their offense overnight - whether that be at No. 4 or lower.