The NFL combine will begin this week and NFL teams will get to weigh, measure and interview hundreds of prospects. It opens the final stages of draft preparation.
Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar published his first mock draft of the season before the combine. For the Arizona Cardinals, the first pick overall is not a huge surprise.
He has them taking Ohio State defensive end Nick Bosa No. 1 overall.
The Cardinals have many needs, most notably along the offensive line. But Bosa is too complete a prospect to avoid here, especially for a team that had little pass rush outside of Chandler Jones’ efforts. Though Bosa shut his 2018 season down early after a core muscle injury, he still put up four sacks and six tackles for loss in just three games, and there’s the matter of his 2017 campaign, when he blew up every offensive lineman he faced, finishing with 8.5 sacks, 16 tackles for loss, and 66 total pressures. At 6’4” and 263 pounds, Bosa brings older brother Joey to mind as a complete pass-rusher, with the speed off the snap, strength, agility, and comprehensive hand moves to transition seamlessly to the rigors of the NFL.
This creates a potentially scary pass rush off the edge with Bosa and Chandler Jones. Defensive coordinator Vance Joseph will love having two edge rushers.
As for the rest of the first round, some picks of interest are the San Francisco 49ers taking Ed Oliver second overall instead of Josh Allen or Wuinnen Williams. Quarterback Kyler Murray is taken by the Jacksonville Jaguars at No. 7 overall, one selection after the New York Giants take Dwayne Haskins.
Farrar doesn’t believe the chatter about Murray being selected by the Cardinals with the first overall pick.
Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Stitcher Radio.
