Draft season is officially on top of us -- especially since the Cardinals own the No. 3 overall pick. That also means mock draft season is upon us in earnest, and with it, our mock draft trackers. (We will have a handful of these in the weeks leading up to the draft on April 27, marking the "progress" of everyone's guesses.)
We have moved on to the second version, which includes mock versions only that have been submitted since Tracker 1.0. As is expected from early in the process, there is only one guy that has caught the attention of the mockers, unless the Cardinals happen to trade down significantly. Three guesses who it is, and the first two don't count.
Edge Will Anderson, Alabama
Mel Kiper, ESPN; Charles Davis, NFL.com; Chad Reuter, NFL.com; Ryan Wilson, cbssports.com; Pete Prisco, cbssports.com; Daniel Jeremiah, NFL.com; Doug Farrar, USA Today; Trevor Sikkema, Pro Football Focus; Charles McDonald, Yahoo Sports; Staff, The Athletic; Scouting Department, The 33rd Team; Bucky Brooks, NFL.com
If the Cardinals stay at 3 and don't take Anderson, it may be the greatest upset ever draft-wise, at least with those mocking the 2023 draft. Heck, even if they do trade, people expect them to take Anderson (Kiper, Reuter and The 33rd Team have the Cardinals swapping with the No. 4 Colts and still grabbing the Alabama pass rusher.) Unlike the first mock tracker, no one is willing to go on a limb anymore and say the Cardinals stay put and take another player. Of course, things can still change. But it doesn't feel that they will.
Edge Tyree Wilson, Texas Tech
Brad Spielberger, Pro Football Focus
This one is interesting to chew on since Spielberger gets specific in his trade. He has the Cardinals going from 3 to 6 in a deal with the Lions. The Lions get 3 to take QB Anthony Richardson. The Cardinals get 6, 48 in the second round, 81 in the third round, and a first- and a fourth-round in 2024. That's a haul that will has to make Monti Ossenfort pause if it were to be offered. It means losing Anderson (and in the division, because this scenario has Anderson going to the Seahawks at 5) and getting Wilson, who seems to be considered the second-best edge in the draft. When people ask me why the Cardinals might trade down, it's offers like this.
Cornerback Christian Gonzalez, Oregon
Walter Cherepinsky, Walterfootball.com
This is also a trade-down scenario. The problem is Cherepinsky doesn't attach any details -- in his mock, he leaves the Cardinals at 3 and gives them Gonzalez, noting the Cardinals won't stay at 3 and wherever they might end up (in the top 10) Gonzalez would be the pick. That's no fun. I will say this: If the Cardinals get Gonzalez, chances are sky high that the fact Gonzalez is the brother-in-law of Cardinals QB David Blough will become as good of an azcardinals.com meme as Donovan McNabb having a house in Chandler or the potential return of Daryl Washington.
