The tenor of the 2023 NFL Draft on Thursday night could hinge around the Arizona Cardinals, sitting at the No. 3 overall pick.
If a club is looking to leap to the top of the draft for a quarterback, positioning itself in front of the Indianapolis Colts, who need a QB at No. 4, the Cardinals are the ideal trade partner. If they trade the pick, defensive players could begin to fall. If they keep the choice, a QB could slide.
New general manager Monti Ossenfort noted in his recent pre-draft presser that he's open for business.
"I think if the trade makes sense and it's the right decision for our team at the time, then we'll do it," Ossenfort said last Friday. "If the right move is to sit and pick a player who we've done a lot of work on through the process, then we'll be prepared to do that, so I wouldn't say that it's any more likely now as opposed to down the line."
It's well-known that the Cardinals would like to trade down, if possible. With Kyler Murray inked to a long-term contract, quarterback isn't a need in Arizona, so trading back and picking up additional assets would help immensely in Ossenfort's rebuild.
The question is whether a team might get desperate enough to ship assets the Cards find acceptable to get up to No. 3.
We know the Carolina Panthers are taking a QB at No. 1 overall -- likely Bryce Young. The Houston Texans at No. 2 have done a great job shrouding their plans, with reports all over the board on what they might do with the pick -- from taking their top QB to a defensive player.
"I have no idea what's going to happen at one or two," Ossenfort said. "I think that's a little bit why when we go through our draft exercises those are the questions that we're going to have to ask ourselves. So no, I don't think anything that happens in front of us will dictate what we're going to do at three."
If a desirable QB is on the board when the Cards get on the clock at No. 3, they could find themselves the recipient of trade calls for the pick. One thing worth noting at this point is most trades for teams leaping into the top 10 for quarterbacks come well before draft night, so it might be a little tougher to find a dancing partner, particularly if clubs aren't as enamored with the quarterbacks remaining as the public.
