Florida State's Eddie Goldman is among the top defensive tackles available in this year's class.
The NFL draft will be held from April 30 through May 2 in Chicago. The Cardinals addressed several needs in free agency and are now zeroing in on their draft targets. We'll take a look at each position over the next few weeks.
Draft primer: Defensive line
Cardinals under contract: DE Calais Campbell, DE Frostee Rucker; DT Corey Peters; DE Ed Stinson; DE Cory Redding; DE Josh Mauro; DT Alameda Ta'amu
Need: Medium
Images of the defensive linemen projected to get drafted
USC DT Leonard Williams: Projected first-rounder (top-10)
Washington DT Danny Shelton: Projected first-rounder (top-10)
Oregon DE Arik Armstead: Projected first-rounder
Texas DT Malcom Brown: Projected first-rounder
Florida State DT Eddie Goldman: Projected second-rounder
UCLA DE Owamagbe Odighizuwa: Projected first-rounder
LSU DE Danielle Hunter: Projected second-rounder
Mississippi State DE Preston Smith: Projected second-rounder
Florida State DE Mario Williams: Projected second-rounder
Iowa DT Carl Davis: Projected second-rounder
Clemson DT Grady Jarrett: Projected second-rounder
Oklahoma DT Jordan Phillips: Projected second-rounder
Ohio State DT Michael Bennett: Projected second-rounder
Arkansas DE Trey Flowers: Projected third-rounder
Southern Mississippi DT Rakeem Nunez-Roches: Projected third-rounder
Washington State DT Xavier Cooper: Projected third-rounder
Kentucky DE Za'Darius Smith: Projected third-rounder
Miami DE Anthony Chickillo: Projected fourth-rounder
Michigan DE Frank Clark: Projected fourth-rounder
Stanford DE Henry Anderson: Projected fourth-rounder
Auburn DT Gabe Wright: Projected fourth-rounder
Norfolk State DE Lynden Trail: Projected fourth-rounder
Arizona State DT Marcus Hardison: Projected fourth-rounder
West Virginia DE Shaquille Riddick: Projected fifth-rounder
Clemson DE Corey Crawford: Projected fifth-rounder
Rice DT Christian Covington: Projected fifth-rounder
Central Michigan DT Leterrius Walton: Projected fifth-rounder
Northern Iowa DT Xavier Williams: Projected fifth-rounder
Penn State DE Deion Barnes: Projected sixth-rounder
Georgia DE Ray Drew: Projected sixth-rounder
Purdue DE Ryan Russell: Projected sixth-rounder
Montana DE Zach Wagenmann: Projected sixth-rounder
Chattanooga DT Derrick Lott: Projected sixth-rounder
Houston DT Joey Mbu: Projected sixth-rounder
Mississippi State DT Kaleb Eulls: Projected sixth-rounder
Oregon State DE Obum Gwacham: Projected seventh-rounder
Northwestern State DT Deon Simon: Projected seventh-rounder
UCLA DT Ellis McCarthy: Projected seventh-rounder
Iowa DT Louis Trinca-Pasat: Projected seventh-rounder
Analysis: The Cardinals beefed up their line in free agency by adding defensive tackle Corey Peters and defensive end Cory Redding, but also lost defensive tackles Darnell Dockett, Dan Williams and Tommy Kelly. General Manager Steve Keim puts a premium on depth at this spot, so the team could add a player in the draft.
Defensive tackle seems like the more pressing need. Peters can play nose tackle, but he's also versatile enough to move around
and adding a player there would give the Cards more flexibility. Alameda Ta'amu is a wild card, as he excelled two seasons ago rotating with Williams at nose tackle but was a non-factor in 2014 as he made his way back from a torn ACL. USC's Leonard Williams and Washington's Danny Shelton are projected to be picked before the Cardinals choose at No. 24, but options may include Texas' Malcom Brown or Florida State's Eddie Goldman.
Calais Campbell will see the majority of time at one defensive end spot, while Frostee Rucker, Ed Stinson, Redding and Josh Mauro should prove capable in a rotation (and Kareem Martin could move back if he proves ineffective at outside linebacker). Rucker and Redding are in the back half of their careers, so if the Cardinals want to get younger at the spot, players like Oregon's Arik Armstead, UCLA's Owamagbe Odighizuwa or Mississippi State's Preston Smith could be early options.
The Cardinals had many players who shifted between the edge and the interior of the defensive line in 2014, and the current personnel could probably make it work again if needed. Keim won't need to reach to add a defensive lineman, but also won't hesitate to pull the trigger if there is one he is excited about.
