Cardinals go OT over Haason Reddick in NFL.com’s 2017 re-draft
Apr 4, 2020, 2:40 PM
Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end O.J. Howard (80) beats Arizona Cardinals outside linebacker Haason Reddick (43) on a 10-yard touchdown reception during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Nov. 10, 2019, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Jason Behnken)
(AP Photo/Jason Behnken)
The Arizona Cardinals would probably want a take-back on the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft but not the second.
In NFL.com’s re-draft of the 2017 class, Haason Reddick wasn’t drafted by Arizona with the 13th overall pick, and the Cardinals’ selection of Budda Baker at 36th wouldn’t be possible.
Reddick, who is now a backup outside linebacker who switched positions last season, wasn’t selected at all, while Baker moved into the first round of Adam Rank’s 32-pick re-draft.
If not Reddick at 13th, then who? Rank had the Cardinals pick current New Orleans Saints offensive tackle Ryan Ramczyk, who originally went 32nd overall.
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Rank, though, found the Cardinals’ place in the 2017 draft order problematic. They had a big need at quarterback, but there weren’t any options after Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson were selected early on.
This was such a weird pick to make, because the Cardinals were in the mix for a quarterback. But with Mahomes and Watson gone, there was no way they were going to use such a high selection on the next best QB, Nathan Peterman. Instead, Arizona addressed a seemingly endless need by snagging the best lineman in the draft, a bookend tackle who will be dominant at his position for years and honestly would have had a good case to be the No. 3 overall pick. In this exercise, the Cardinals have landed quite a steal.
Baker, meanwhile, was drafted 28th overall by the Dallas Cowboys, eight spots sooner than he was originally selected.
The Cowboys had a need at safety in this draft and landed Woods in Round 6. They would have happily taken him here, as well, but were usurped by the Chiefs. I’ve always considered Baker a good player. He was fourth in the NFL last year in tackles (147) and really improved under Cardinals defensive coordinator Vance Joseph. He has yet to have an interception, which is fine, because I feel like the Cowboys would find a good use for him.
The top-two of the re-draft had Mahomes, the current Kansas City Chiefs quarterback, going to the Cleveland Browns. Then, the San Francisco 49ers selected Watson, who is currently with the Houston Texans.
From there, tight end George Kittle went No. 3 (he was actually drafted 146th overall), landing with the Chicago Bears. Rank had running back Christian McCaffrey getting drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Tennessee Titans grabbing wide receiver Chris Godwin to round out the top five picks.
