A look at the seven players the Cardinals land in this hypothetical current-player mock draft to starter a team over.
If every team were to start their rosters over and every player were to enter some sort of reorganizational draft, what would happen, assuming the teams would want to win now?
Well, NFL.com’s Chad Reuter put together a hypothetical seven-round draft where teams would build their team from scratch and the order would be the order of the 2025 NFL draft, but then reversing order every round.
The Cardinals picked in the middle of the rounds, so let’s see who they would land.
NFL building-from-scratch player draft: Arizona CardinalsRound 1: QB Trevor LawrenceRound 2: DE Aidan HutchinsonRound 3: WR Nico CollinsRound 4: G Trey SmithRound 5: S Budda BakerRound 6: DL Calais CampbellRound 7: RB Joe MixonAnalysis
This group would be a good start to a team, and they get a couple of current Cardinals in Baker and Campbell. Of course, it ignores a pair of premium positions at tackle and cornerback.
In Round 1, they take Lawrence over quarterbacks C.J. Stroud and Aaron Rodgers. Kyler Murray is selected one pick before, going to the Atlanta Falcons.
Offensive tackle Penei Sewell and interior defensive lineman Jalen Carter are drafted soon after Aidan Hutchinson, but considering his impact and motor, he is still a good pick.
In the third round, tackle Trent Williams and tight end Trey McBride. Would you go for Collins instead of them?
In Round 4, Smith isn’t bad, especially since they hadn’t already selected an offensive lineman.
In Round 5, they get Baker, while in Round 6, they take Campbell. Both are Cardinals legends.
Finally, they get a solid running back.
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