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👋 GOOD MORNING
Happy Wednesday! Tomorrow’s the big day — NFL Draft day! Make sure you stay tuned in to our amazing PHNX Cardinals team for all of the latest, and if you want to spend the draft alongside amazing like-minded fans such as yourself, RSVP to our draft party on Thursday at Gila River Resorts and Casino – Wild Horse Pass! Our Diehards receive discounted tickets, so there’s no better time to leverage our amazing Diehard deal (more on that below), then take immediate advantage with a discounted draft party rate!
Tickets include entrance into the Upper Deck Bar and Grill, and the PHNX Cardinals live show, an all-you-can-eat buffet from 5-7 pm, drink tickets, raffle tickets for giveaways, and a discounted rate to stay at the hotel! Hope to see you there!
One last note: Remember, to receive this in your email every single morning, you can sign up for the newsletter right here, and I’ll keep you in the loop with everything going on this summer! Don’t miss a beat!
On to the show!
Mock Draft 5.0 – Where Did The Pundits Land?
It seems everyone has come to their senses.
The NFL Draft kicks off tomorrow in Green Bay, and questions have lingered since free agency on where the Cardinals will land with the 16th overall pick. A number of pundits were getting creative in previous weeks, predicting GM Monti Ossenfort and his staff may snag a wide receiver with their only first-round selection, but those crazy predictions seem to have tapered down since. Of all of the mock drafts I sifted through for this exercise, the only representation on offense was on the line.
Make sure you check out the ALLCITY Monster Mock Draft, in which draft expert Fran Duffy predicted all 257 picks of the 2025 NFL Draft. Pretty cool stuff!
Cardinals May Gravitate To Defense, Or Maybe Even A Trade
Things have seemingly returned to where they were before free agency kicked off, when basically everyone believed the Cardinals would bolster their defense. That mindset shifted a bit after the Cardinals lured Josh Sweat to Arizona in free agency, but the norm has steadily reverted back to the defensive side of the ball, sans a few selections on the offensive line. There are even a few repeat names showing up — specifcally Edge rushers, defensive tackles and linebackers.
Here’s how the most recent mock drafts from many of the major publications have shaken out:
- Fran Duffy, ALLCITY – Edge Mykel Williams, Georgia (Following a trade with Miami to move up to 13)
- Mel Kiper, ESPN – CB Jahdae Barron, Texas
- Dane Brugler, The Athletic – Edge Mykel Williams, Georgia
- Chris Trapasso, CBS Sports – OT Josh Simmons, Ohio State
- Bucky Brooks, NFL.com – DT Derrick Harmon, Oregon
- Nate Davis, USA Today – LB Jihaad Campbell, Alabama
- Conor Orr, Sports Illustrated – DT Derrick Harmon, Oregon (Following a trade with Denver to move back to 20)
- Pat Fitzmaurice, FantasyPros – CB Will Johnson, Michigan
- Vinnie Iyer, The Sporting News – LB Jihaad Campbell, Alabama
- Henry McKenna, Fox Sports – G Kelvin Banks Jr, Texas
BONUS AI PROJECTIONS!
USA Today did a pretty cool exercise in which they leveraged available artificial intelligence to determine where the Cardinals will land. Here are those results:
- Microsoft Copilot: Walter Nolen, DT, Mississippi
- Meta AI: Donovan Jackson, OG, Ohio State
- Grok: Mykel Williams, Edge, Georgia
- ChatGPT: James Pearce Jr., Edge, Tennessee
My take: I mean, how amazing is that AI exercise USA Today did? What I thought was especially cool is that Grok aligned with our very own Fran Duffy, as well as The Athletic’s Dan Brugler, in giving Edge Mykel Williams a look. There are also a few trades called out, but the 16th overall selection isn’t exactly the most attractive pick out there, so you’d have to think the Cardinals will either need to give up a lot more to trade up, or make a healthy acquisition to move back (or give up their first-rounder entirely).
One thing is for sure — the waiting game is almost over! You can tune into ESPN at 5 pm tomorrow to catch all the coverage from Lambeau Field — assuming you’re not at our draft party!
Take a deeper dive: Check out the PHNX Cardinals 100, a big board all about how Arizona can address its biggest needs.
Musings From Around (and Sometimes Beyond) The Valley
Runnin’ Into the Playoffs: The Tucson Roadrunners kick off their first-round matchup in Abbotsford, looking to upset the second-seeded Canucks after sneaking into the Pacific Division’s seventh-and-final playoff spot. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 pm tonight, tomorrow, and also Saturday, should a Game 3 be necessary.
Pavin the Way: The D-backs beat the Rays 5-1 yesterday to earn their second straight win, led by Pavin Smith’s two RBI day. Brandon Pfaadt earned his fourth win of the season — pretty darn impressive for a guy who wasn’t even guaranteed a spot in the starting rotation heading into the season.
Life’s a Beach: The No. 2 seeded Sun Devils and No. 3 seeded Wildcats will face off in the Big 12 Beach Volleyball Championships today, with the winner moving on to face either top-seeded TCU or No. 4 Utah. ASU topped UA twice this season, but the Wildcats own a 15-9 all-time record between the two schools.
🧢 Tip of the Hat by Branded Bills
Which of these Suns trades would you be open to? 👀
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