Cardinals weren’t afraid to roll the dice on polarizing defensive prospects in NFL draft

TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — The Arizona Cardinals weren’t scared to roll the dice on a few polarizing defensive prospects in the NFL draft.

The franchise selected Mississippi defensive lineman Walter Nolen with the No. 16 pick on Thursday before grabbing Michigan cornerback Will Johnson at No. 47 on Friday.

Nolen’s motor and maturity were questioned by some scouts, while Johnson tumbled out of the first round because of injury concerns. However, both were widely considered among the most talented players in the draft.

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It’s a sign that coach Jonathan Gannon and general manager Monti Ossenfort — in their third seasons with the Cardinals — have grown confident in their ability to evaluate talent and make their own decisions. Coming off an 8-9 season, both men are under pressure to lead the franchise back to the playoffs for the first time since 2021.

“Everybody that’s on our board has a different story,” Ossenfort said. “Different guys have different things we have to work through. We go through the process of that, and when we put together our board, we place a value on the player, and that encompasses everything.”

In the end, Gannon and Ossenfort felt more than comfortable drafting both players.

The Cardinals focused on defense throughout the draft, using six of their seven picks on that side of the ball. They took Oregon edge rusher Jordan Burch in the third round at No. 78. He had 8 1/2 sacks for the Ducks in 2024.

Nolen’s confidence

Nolen was a blue-chip high school recruit who had two relatively disappointing seasons at Texas A&M before transferring to Ole Miss, where he excelled in 2024 with 14 1/2 tackles for loss and 6 1/2 sacks to earn first-team All-America honors.

The 21-year-old didn’t lack confidence after getting drafted, comparing himself to Aaron Donald, an eight-time All-Pro who terrorized opponents for 10 seasons with the Los Angeles Rams before retiring last year.

“You guys will love meeting him — he’s got a quiet confidence about him,” Gannon said.

Then, regarding the Donald comments, the coach added with a grin: “That’s loud confidence.”

If Nolen is even half the player Donald was, the Cardinals will have a very good defensive lineman.

Johnson & Harrison

Johnson worked out in Arizona in the months leading up to the draft and built a rapport with Cardinals second-year receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. The two were rivals when Johnson played cornerback at Michigan and Harrison was at Ohio State.

Johnson said they’ve always had a mutual respect and agreed it would be amazing if they were playing together in Arizona.

Improbably, it happened, even if the news came one day later than expected. Johnson said the long wait to hear his name was tough, but he was ready to show other teams what they missed.

“I’m on a mission,” Johnson said. “It definitely woke me up for sure.”

Johnson missed several games during his final season at Michigan because of turf toe, and a hamstring injury kept him out of Michigan’s pro day. But the real concern was a reported knee issue, though Johnson said that injury hadn’t bothered him in two years.

Ossenfort hasn’t been scared to take players with injury concerns. The Cardinals selected cornerback Garrett Williams in the third round of the 2023 draft despite an ACL injury, and the 23-year-old has become a valuable player, making 11 starts last season.

Building with Buckeyes

The Cardinals used a pair of late-round selections on Ohio State defensive players, taking linebacker Cody Simon in the fourth round and cornerback Denzel Burke in the fifth.

Ossenfort and Gannon have used plenty of draft capital on Buckeyes in the recent past. Arizona selected Ohio State left tackle Paris Johnson Jr. at No. 6 overall in 2023 and added Harrison with the No. 4 pick in 2024.

Deep cuts

The Cardinals drafted their only offensive player in the sixth round when they took Texas guard Hayden Conner. It’s a position of need and the 6-foot-6, 314-pound Conner could compete for playing time immediately.

In the seventh round, Arizona used its final pick on Nevada safety Kitan Crawford.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/NFL