The Arizona Cardinals shocked the world yesterday by trading QB Joshua Dobbs away to the Minnesota Vikings. Dobbs started the first eight games of the season and performed admirably given his circumstances.
However, the Cardinals now appear to be heading in a direction. Is that direction toward drafting USC QB Caleb Williams? It certainly looks like it is going that way, with rookie QB Clayton Tune likely starting next week.
Arizona Cardinals 2024 NFL Draft Status
During the preseason, there were accusations that the Arizona Cardinals were tanking the 2023 NFL season. A big reason why these accusations came up was because they cut veteran QB Colt McCoy.
Since then, they have been rolling with Dobbs. However, Dobbs led the Arizona Cardinals to one of the biggest upset wins of the year in Week 3 over the Dallas Cowboys. Arizona nearly won the week prior against the New York Giants as well.
However, a big event happened in Week 8 that may have steered them in a different direction. The Carolina Panthers got their first win of the year over the Houston Texans.
Why is that big for the Cardinals? Because that Carolina win moved the Cardinals into the top spot for the 2024 NFL Draft.
Why Caleb Williams?
Caleb Williams is arguably the most highly anticipated quarterback from college since Andrew Luck. He has lit up the college football world ever since his debut in Oklahoma during his freshman season.
However, Williams chose to follow head coach Lincoln Riley to USC after he decided to take a new coaching job there. For Williams, it proved to be the right decision.
Williams has 67 touchdown passes, 7,183 passing yards, and just nine interceptions during his USC tenure. He has not even completed two seasons with the Trojans and is putting up those kinds of numbers.
The 2024 quarterback class is highly anticipated as a whole. There are plenty of legitimate talents out there, such as North Carolina QB Drake Maye, Washington QB Michael Penix Jr., and possibly Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders.
However, Williams is considered the cream of the crop in an already stacked draft class.
Caleb Williams Contenders
The Cardinals are not the only team in the mix for Caleb Williams. At the time of writing, there appear to be five main teams in contention for this top pick. You can argue all of them need a quarterback.
Some teams included in the mix are the New York Giants, Green Bay Packers, and the New England Patriots.
However, the Chicago Bears will likely be the biggest threat to Arizona for this top pick. The reason is that they have two top picks in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Not only do they have their own with a 2-6 record, but they also have Carolina’s first-round pick next year. It essentially means they have two chances for the top spot.
Kyler Murray
One final caveat to this theory is the status of Kyler Murray. He has not played all season due to an ACL injury.
Murray was taken with the #1 overall pick by the Arizona Cardinals in the 2019 NFL Draft. Despite giving Murray an extension, there have been questions about whether Murray’s time with the Cardinals will come to an end soon.
However, Arizona did not trade him before the NFL trade deadline this year. Keep an eye on Murray this season. If he comes back sooner rather than later, it could throw another wrench in the Cardinals’ chances for Caleb Williams.
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