Cardinals NFL Draft Mailbag 2.0: Final Rumors Before the Pick

The 2026 NFL Draft is nearly here, and it feels like the draft truly starts with the Arizona Cardinals at No. 3.

The Las Vegas Raiders are all but set to welcome Fernando Mendoza with the No. 1 pick while either of Arvell Reese or David Bailey appear to be the New York Jets' No. 2 pick.

From there, a wild array of possibilities appear to be on deck for Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort.

Thanks to all the mailbag questions - here's to hoping everybody enjoys the draft:

Does Jeremiyah Love really have a serious shot at going 3 or is it all a smoke screen? - Mack

Mack, we often see hype trains come and go throughout the draft process, though the Cardinals and Love pairing has been... extra loud.

And regardless of how you feel on taking a running back with the third overall pick, there does appear to be legitimate interest there from Arizona. I initially thought it was a massive smokescreen to get teams to move up, but from my understanding the Cardinals would very much be okay with taking Love.

Personally, I would rather trade down or draft an edge rusher. However, it's clear the Cardinals believe Love is the caliber of prospect who can really get things going for their offense.

Final answer: Yes, Love very much is a serious contender for the third overall pick. I think Arizona still prefers a trade down, but if the price isn't right, Love might be it.

Read the room, how's the team responding to the new coaching staff? Any signs of hope? - Eric

Eric, it's always tough to get a gauge on how the locker room is taking to a new coach, especially this early in the process. We also have to remember this is largely the same room that wanted Jonathan Gannon to stay.

That's not to say Mike LaFleur hasn't won those guys over, but more so it's just really hard to see if the guys are taking to what LaFleur's doing so far. In the little we've been able to interact with players it's been positive, though it's easy to have that mindset in the offseason when stakes aren't high and everything is new.

But, to answer your question Eric, it seems so far so good. Guys such as Hjalte Froholdt and Zaven Collins said LaFleur is very much a no nonsense guy who is straight and direct, which players appreciate.

If Cardinals don’t draft Ty Simpson…Is it Dante Moore season for 2027? - X

X, it very well could be.

The Cardinals visited Oregon more than any other school during the 2025 college football season. Their interest, at least in my opinion, felt pretty clear in Moore before he went back to school.

For what it's worth, the Jets very well may have considered Moore at the No. 2 pick — so perhaps Arizona still wouldn't have gotten him even if he stayed in the draft pool.

The only problem with automatically plugging one player to a team in a draft that's 365+ days away is... so much needs to happen for the two timelines to cross each other. Will Arizona be bad enough to be in position to get a quarterback? Will Moore's stock rise or fall? How will the NFL's QB market shape the draft and who goes where?

There's several moving parts to plugging one player to one team. Would the Cardinals show interest in Moore again? Assuming he plays up to par, surely. Whether Arizona actually can get him is an entirely different conversation.

Is the roster really as bad as everyone says it is? - TX

TX, I really go back and forth on this often.

This is practically the same roster who many expected to make the postseason last season before a slew of injuries and poor play derailed those hopes. Of course every team is different, but much of the groundwork from 2025 is there.

Obviously QB is the missing piece to the puzzle here after Kyler Murray's departure, though you'll hear many say Murray wasn't the answer anyways. The Cardinals obviously agreed.

I think there's weapons on the offensive side of the ball while all three levels have some sort of impact player. There's a fusion of young and veteran talent that, quite frankly, shouldn't see the Cardinals only win three games next season.

With that being said, there's very much work to do on this roster. Arizona finds themselves in a weird gray area of not being the worst team in the league, but also being so far away from a playoff team it's notable.

If they stick and pick Arvell Reese should fans be disappointed or worry? -Alberto

Yes, but not for the reasons you'd think.

Many fans see Arvell Reese's versatility and immediately get flashbacks to Isaiah Simmons.

To insert some logic here, the Cardinals' current regime didn't draft Simmons. These are also two completely different players and profiles entering the NFL, too.

That's not why fans should worry.

A player like Reese owns some of the highest potential in this class as a guy who can either be a dominant edge rusher or inside linebacker. If you draft him, you likely play him as an edge rusher but will get creative with his skillset. Many pin comparisons to Micah Parsons, which makes sense not in terms of talent but his projected usage/role at the next level.

Why fans should worry is guys with that high of a ceiling also feel like they have the highest variance to fail. Reese is the furthest bet from a "sure thing" (not that those even exist in the NFL Draft) and the risk/reward with him just feels higher than most.

The ultimate question: Can defensive coordinator Nick Rallis maximize him? That should be the defining factor for fans and if they should be worried.

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