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Arizona Cardinals: 1st Round Targets in the 2022 NFL Draft

By Andrew Fischer

Alabama Crimson Tide wide receiver Jameson Williams (1) catches a pass as Cincinnati Bearcats cornerback Coby Bryant (8) defends in the first quarter during the College Football Playoff semifinal game at the 86th Cotton Bowl Classic, Friday, Dec. 31, 2021, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.Syndication The Enquirer
Alabama Crimson Tide wide receiver Jameson Williams (1) catches a pass as Cincinnati Bearcats cornerback Coby Bryant (8) defends in the first quarter during the College Football Playoff semifinal game at the 86th Cotton Bowl Classic, Friday, Dec. 31, 2021, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.Syndication The Enquirer /
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Jan 17, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA; Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray (1) warms up before playing against the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Wild Card playoff game.Nfc Wild Card Playoff Cardinals Vs Rams
Jan 17, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA; Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray (1) warms up before playing against the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Wild Card playoff game.Nfc Wild Card Playoff Cardinals Vs Rams /

The story of the 2021-2022 Arizona Cardinals will be remembered as one of missed opportunities. They started the season strong, jumping out to the best record in the NFL, at 7-0. Then they dropped a Thursday night home game to a shorthanded Green Bay Packers team and proceeded to lose five of their next nine games after that. If that wasn’t bad enough, they laid an egg against the Rams in the divisional round of the NFL playoffs, getting trounced 34-11.

This is a crucial offseason for the Cardinals, as it’s the last year of Kyler Murray’s rookie deal, and they need to surround him with talent before they’re forced to pay him the ever-increasing market value for franchise quarterbacks. Complicating matters is the fact that they lost their top edge rusher (Chandler Jones), their number two receiver (Christian Kirk), and one of their starting inside linebackers (Jordan Hicks) to free agency. Defensive tackle Jordan Phillips also left Arizona to go back to the Bills, where he’d previously played.

Arizona Cardinals: 2022 NFL Draft First Round Targets

As it stands now, the Arizona Cardinals have the 23rd pick of the first round. They have picks in each of the first three rounds, but zero picks in rounds four and five. The Cardinals do have five picks in the final two rounds of the draft and could ostensibly use those to move up. They could also trade down in the first round to pick up another pick in the middle rounds. They have multiple holes to fill, mostly on the defensive side of the ball. As we examine their first round targets, we’ll try to figure out who might be available at pick #23 and who might offer the right blend of talent and filling a need. Here are several first round targets for the Arizona Cardinals in the 2022 NFL Draft.

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