The Cardinals’ top NFL free agency targets when the 2025 offseason begins

In 2024, the Arizona Cardinals took one step up under head coach Jonathan Gannon.

Unfortunately, while football is a game of inches, the Cardinals needed a few more years to really show the kind of progress their fan base wanted to see, with an 8-9 record culminating in 16th overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft a bittersweet reward for coming close but no cigar behind the Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks in the NFC West.

Their offense was okay, ranking No. 18 in passing yards and seventh in rushing yards, and while they turned in some truly incredible performances in 2024, like their incredible 40-plus point bookend wins over the Rams in Week 2 and the San Francisco 49ers in Week 18, they were simply too few and far between.

Was it surprising that the Cardinals offense was inconsistent in 2024? Not really, as Kyler Murry actually learned a new scheme after missing most of last season, and Marvin Harris Jr. turned out to be a little different than some fans initially expected.

What was surprising, however, were the Cardinals’ defensive struggles, as that was widely considered Gannon’s strength. Ranking 15th in points allowed but 21st in yards surrendered, with the 14th-ranked passing offense and the 20th-ranked rushing defense, the Cardinals really struggled to get consistent pressure on opposing quarterbacks, with just one player, Zaven Collins, with five or more sacks on the season. Granted, the team still finished the year with 41 sacks, or about 2.4 per game, but they didn’t really have “one guy” to build their offense around, with 17 different players record at least one sack on the season.

Could that player make it into the draft? Maybe yes, maybe no, as there are plenty of interesting defenders with mid-first round grades like Georgia’s Mykel Williams, Michigan’s Kenneth Grant, Texas A&M’s Shemar Stewart or even Jack Sawyer if he continues to blow up in the College Football Playoffs, but can the Cardinals guarantee it will happen? No, not unless they surrender even more draft picks to select “their guy” high, be it an elite edge like Abdul Carter or Mason Graham, who might remind Gannon of his former Philadelphia Eagles setter, Fletcher Cox.

Would Gannon want to relive his Philly glory days, when his defensive effort was so impressive, if it landed him the Cardinals job in the first place? Certainly, and in an interesting twist of fate, he has a chance to do so as arguably his biggest Philadelphia success story, Javon Hargrave, was just released by the 49ers and could take a flight to Arizona for another shot at making double digits bags.