The Arizona Cardinals got off to a good start for building for the future under general manager Monti Ossenfort. While they finished 4-13 in 2023 with one of the league’s worst defenses, there is some hope.
They had a solid rookie class.
NFL.com’s Chad Reuter and Eric Edholm ranked the 32 teams’ rookie classes and the Cardinals were in the top 10.
They came in right at No. 10.
The Cardinals had a league-high 64 rookie starts and 11 different rookies started games, also a league-high.
Tackle Paris Johnson played every snap. Cornerback Garrett Williams looked good after coming back from his knee injury.
Tight end Elijah Higgins showed promise late in the year and they got contributions from corners Kei’Trel Clark and Starling Thomas.
BJ Ojulari and Dante Stills added pass-rushing juice.
All in all, there is promise after years of draft classes that did almost nothing.
With a slew of picks in the 2024 draft and the promise of last year’s class, the Cardinals are setting themselves up for sustained depth on the roster, which would be a big change.
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