The Cardinals worked hard to build up their defensive line this offseason.
They signed Dalvin Tomlinson and Calais Campbell. They re-signed L.J. Collier. They were getting veterans Justin Jones and Bilal Nichols back from injury. And they had young players Darius Robinson – their 2024 first-round pick – and Dante Stills.
So Thursday night, they added … a potential Aaron Donald?
The Cardinals nabbed Ole Miss defensive tackle Walter Nolen III with the 16th pick overall in the NFL draft, a player brimming with confidence, one who said "I'm a unicorn" with the ability to do whatever as long as the coaching is there, and who had said in an interview earlier in the offseason he thought he'd be the next Aaron Donald.
Nolen didn't come quite as strong with that sentiment after being selected. But as a "smaller" defensive lineman at 6-foot-3 and under 300 pounds – like Donald had been – he wasn't backing away from the comparison.
"I feel we have the same mentality when it comes to D-line," Nolen said during his conference call Thursday after he was picked. "I can't wait to get out there and hopefully do better than what he did. He set the bar pretty high."
Both coach Jonathan Gannon and GM Monti Ossenfort smiled at Nolen's Donald wishes, noting that generally, Nolen is quiet. Ossenfort called him a three-down player, a disruptor from the interior of the defensive line that the Cardinals have been craving.
Nolen's talent is unquestioned. But he lamented some of the criticisms he saw leveled against him – that he doesn't love football, that he might not be a good teammate – and appreciated the Cardinals talking to him about it during a pre-draft visit. (The Cardinals also had chances to speak with him at the Senior Bowl, the Combine, and had personal contacts on the Ole Miss staff.)
"They didn't think nothing about what people were saying (negative) about me," Nolen said. "They came straight to the source. For them to believe in me, I can't wait to get out there and perform."
Gannon said multiple times Nolen has "a huge heart." The player impressed them every time they met with him, and watching his game tape convinced them of his drive. The first thing he told Ossenfort when the Cardinals got Nolen on the phone to tell him he was the pick? "Send me that (play)book."
"I don't know what narratives are out there or anything like that – I make up my own mind," Gannon said. "This guy is a Cardinal 1000 percent."
Nolen was a first-team All-American in 2024, his one season at Ole Miss after two years at Texas A&M. He finished with 6.5 sacks and 14 tackles for loss, and was a finalist for the Outland Trophy, which is awarded to the best offensive/defensive lineman in college football.
He knows the competition level will be stiff on the Cardinals, which have had an amazing revamp of the front seven. In addition to the defensive linemen, they also signed edge Josh Sweat and are getting BJ Ojulari back from injury outside.
There was never a real chance for a trade down even if Ossenfort had wanted; the phone lines were "quiet" most of the night, the GM said. As the board fell, however, that might've been moot for the Cardinals.
"Today, the perfect world was getting in my car and Walter Nolen on the team," Gannon said.
Even if Nolen might have a learning curve mentally, to be mentored by Campbell and the other veterans is an ideal situation.
He still must earn his playing time, Gannon emphasized. But Nolen has the talent to be great.
Donald had heard about Nolen's proclamation in February and at the Scouting combine, delivered a message to Nolen – and was OK with Nolen's goal.
"Keep doing your thing," Donald said in part. "Hopefully you have a long career, a better career than I had."
Donald is going to end up in Canton on the first ballot. If Nolen can be anywhere close to that, the Cardinals will have made a franchise-altering choice to start their 2025 class.
"By the time I take my cleats off," Nolen said, "I want to be one of the best."
