Cardinals Open to Trading First-Round Pick

ARIZONA -- Don't call it a youth movement.

The 2023 Arizona Cardinals employed a slew of rookies - many of which started or contributed in some significant form - as their 14 newcomers to the league who played topped any other team in the NFL last season.

Arizona's 4-13 finish is nothing to gloat about, though the roster went under a massive yet much-needed overhaul thanks to GM Monti Ossenfort. A rebuild was needed in the desert, and the Cardinals delivered in year one of what was a tough but necessary move.

With double digit picks in the 2024 NFL Draft, the influx of young players arriving to the facility doesn't appear to be slowing down any time soon.

“Ultimately, the draft has gotta be where we build and where this team forms the foundation of what we’re going to be moving forward,” Ossenfort told Arizona Sports' Bickley & Marotta.

“It’s the place we get the most swings at it. We get to pick and choose the players we want."

The Cardinals could also be a major player in free agency with a projected $30 million in cap space (after accounting for their projected draft class signings) which could grow with a few roster moves.

Yet the draft is where Arizona will continue building their foundation of the future, and with six picks in the first three rounds, the Cardinals have ample opportunity to again walk out of draft weekend as winners.

“What we’re going to do, we’re going to evaluate the entirety of the draft and we’re going to make the best decision when it comes to that pick," said Ossenfort on Arizona's No. 4 selection.

The Cardinals also have pick 27 in the first round thanks to last year's trade with the Houston Texans.

"I think we showed last year, our propensity is to when that phone rings, we’re going to listen. We’re going to have the opportunity to sit there and pick who we deem worthy of the fourth pick — and if the phone rings and somebody’s got an offer for us to move up, move back, those are all things we’re going to consider.”