Cardinals rookie Hayden Conner is ‘too big to go to space’ but just right for the NFL
Cardinals rookie OL Hayden Conner is too large to fulfill his childhood dream of being an astronaut, his size and versatility earned him an NFL day job.
Watch: Carson Beck’s incredible preseason debut and NFL rookie quarterback comparisons | 7 mins
At 6-foot-6, Cardinals rookie offensive lineman Hayden Conner is about 3 inches too tall to be an astronaut — a childhood dream of his.
A trip to space is “still in (his) back pocket,” however, Conner told Bickley & Marotta on Wednesday.
However, his size and football IQ have made the pursuit of Conner’s new day job a reality.
The Texas Longhorns product was drafted in the sixth round by Arizona with a chance to compete for playing time without a clear-cut starting right guard on the roster.
In three years as a starter for the Longhorns, Conner didn’t miss one of their 43 games and solely handled left guard. Despite this assignment, general manager Monti Ossenfort did his homework and discovered that the 314-pounder can play all five positions on the offensive line.
“I think it gives me a lot of versatility and flexibility in terms of being able to play all five (positions),” Conner said. “It allows me to understand certain concepts differently than other people, but this isn’t college offense anymore. So it’s definitely an adjustment period for sure, but I feel like I’m adjusting pretty well.”
And with Evan Brown to occupy the left guard spot after inking a two-year contract in March, Conner will be competing with Isaiah Adams and Jon Gaines II for right guard.
For Conner, this internal competition was expected, and he is looking forward to taking notes “from the older guys.”
Besides excellent height and positional versatility, NFL analyst Lance Zierlein in his pre-draft scouting of Conner highlighted the lineman’s ability “to shove twisters and edge runners off course.”
As for areas of improvement entering his rookie campaign, Zierlein said Conner needs to address his pad level when being double-teamed and not “overextend(ing) when mirroring.”
Hayden Conner’s level of violence
Anyone who spends more than a minute around Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon learns how much he enjoys the violence of football.
Conner’s self-proclaimed violence level?
“I mean, I’m violent when I need to be. I’m controlled when I need to be, and I think that’s one of my strengths,” Conner said.
Well, he didn’t exactly say he’s a 10 out of 10, but Gannon and Co. must see enough of that energy to give him a shot.
What does Conner think of former Sun Devil Cam Skattebo?
The newest member of the Arizona O-line summed up former Arizona State running back Cam Skattebo in one word: “unreal.”
Conner got a first-hand look at the Sun Devil in the New Year’s Day Peach Bowl, a College Football Playoff game that Texas won, 39-31, in the second overtime.
And Skattebo, who was a fourth-round selection by the New York Giants, really was unreal. He rattled off 242 all-purpose yards, two rushing touchdowns and a 42-yard passing score as the cherry on top.
“We were biting our dang nails the whole time, but it was awesome,” Conner said of Texas prevailing 39-31 in double overtime.
Cardinals rookie Hayden Conner was on the other side of Cam Skattebo's CFP Peach Bowl performance, when Texas pulled out a win against ASU.@Bickley_Marotta pic.twitter.com/jzqa44q7ih
— Arizona Sports (@AZSports) May 14, 2025
Sharing Texas roots with quarterback Kyler Murray
Conner, a native of Katy, Texas, grew up about 250 miles south of his new signal caller Kyler Murray, who was born in Bedford. Four years separate the two, Conner recently turning 23 and Murray 27.
Conner gave K1 his props for an “unbelieveable” high school career in the Lone Star state — Murray went 42-0 at Allen High School. However, he isn’t as thrilled with Murray’s college of choice.
“I mean, he went to OU, so that kind of sucks,” Conner said with a laugh. “But, yeah, it’s awesome to be able to have the opportunity to block for him. He’s definitely a different style quarterback than I’m used to. I think I’ll adjust well to how fast and mobile he is.”
Related
Cardinals sign 4 NFL Draft picks to rookie contracts
PFF's Sikkema pinpoints the Cardinals' biggest remaining hole
Cardinals' Will Johnson has moved on and is motivated after NFL Draft fall
Random facts about the Cardinals' 2025 NFL Draft class
‘He just makes it look smooth and easy’: Carson Beck ends Red & White Practice with a bang
LaFleur does not view Cardinals as being ahead despite extra preseason game
Comments
10 Comments
His ACL is fine. I think AZ is going to sign him the minute he can pass a physical.
I also really like the signing out of Ohio State University 6”6-325LB OL Josh Fryar.
Fryar. A massive mountain of a man at 6-5/325 with 34 5/8in long arms and comes to AZ with a ton of experience appearing in 54 games (30 starts). In 24 he was 1 of only 2 OL to start all 16 games for OSU last season while in 23 Fryar started all 13 games at RT for Ohio State and earned first-team All-Big Ten honors. For as big as he is he moves pretty well running a 5.08 lateral but isnt the best lateral mover, hence why in the NFL I think his home will be at OG and after watching some of his games and reading up on him I think he has a good shot of transitioning over to and becoming a starting RG at best or backup iOL at worst who could also play RT in a pinch if were talking backup depth.His ability to generate movement at the point of attack and create running lanes is shows up watching clips of him, anchors well with a very strong base, powerful upper body/hands, and has nastiness to his game always looking to finish defenders to the turf.
In pass pro he allowed just 1 sack in 376 pass pro reps but that's where his athletic limitations and lack of elite lateral quickness shows up but what he lacks athletically he makes up for w/ quality technique winning leverage battles and showcasing understanding of winning with angles/leverage. In the NFL I think he could end up being a very good starting or back-up OG and his skill set is uniquely perfect for the offense we run. I think there is a reason why OL coach Josh Frye brought the young man with him and prioritized him as an UDFA. Athletically I think a guy like Fryar and Big Will Hernandez are very similar athletes coming out of college, however Fryar is bigger, longer, more powerful and more experienced than WIll was out of UTEP which is another reason I think he could end up being a pretty good OG for us. Athletically he’s almost identical to Cardinals OG Isaiah Adams as well, who himself I think will be a Pro Bowl level starter very soon.
You can see why our new OL coach prioritized signing and bringing Fryar with him from OSU as he has a shot to be an excellent starting OG, which even though he was ungraded isn’t uncommon for a lot of good guards who were in drafted in the past. I really like the shape our interior OL is in, Ossenfort has done a great job finding talent and building competition.
Ehh I dont think resigning Will Hernandez is a must though id love to see it and believe they will as soon as hes able to pass a physical sometime this Summer. We had a premier top 5-10 OL last season ranking 4th run blocking and 8th in pass protection, ranking #1 in AVG YPC 5.65 per rush.
That said I think we have a top 10 OT duo in Elite 6"6-325LB (36in+ long arms) LT Paris Johnson Jr whom after posting a 82.8 PFF grade overall last season I think he continues getting better becoming a top 5 graded LT. We have the 6th ranked Center whos a premier run blocker and very solid above average pass protector in big powerful 6"5-310LB Hjalte Froholdt and an excellent well above average RT capable of playing at a Pro Bowl level still just 27yrs old in 6"5-320LB RT Jonah Williams who I think now fully healthy again has an even better season this year posting a low 80s PFF grade in pass pro and low-mid 70s run blocking grade. He was very good once he came back last season with a 76.7 overall grade the big thing with him after last season is just staying healthy. And we have two high quality backup OTs who can play at a high level at RT in 6"5-320LB RT Christian Jones who I think can be an excellent starting NFL RT and makes a huge year 2 leap along with old RT Kelvin Beachum as solid and reliable as it gets. As long as you have LT/C/RT settled , in the NFL youre going to have a very good solid OL.
At LG I love that they brought back excellent well above average 6"4-320LB LG Evan Brown whos tremendous in pass pro and a very solid run blocker. Next to him though I think last seasons 71st overall 3rd rd pick massive mauling iOL big 6"5-325LB (34in long arms) with elite power n heavy hands he excelled in this scheme last season once he settled down. His last 4 games he posted a PFF grade in the lower/mid 70s to low 80s closing out the season, and when he comes off the ball he just takes dudes for a ride when he locks hands onto them. He has spent all offseason perfecting his technique and himself has bulked up adding 15-20LBs of lean muscle shaving off body fat I think Adams is a guy primed to explode and make a big year 2 leap in a scheme best suited for his skill sets. I also wouldnt over look elite uber athlete at the position 6"4-320LB 34in long arms in OG/C Jon Gaines who posted a 9.95 RAS score in 2023 one of the highest ever. His ACL tear his rookie season set him back basically 2yrs pretty much while he recovered n regained form last season but is now 2yrs removed, he could really surprise as strong as he is now that he has this system down perfect and will be moving again with his rare athleticism n ability. Massive 6"5-325LB UDFA OT/G OSU Josh Fryar athletically tests out identical to both Will Hernandez and Isaiah Adams hes a guy they develop as a OG not a tackle and he could be a beastly OG for a long time same with 6th round pick newly drafted 6"6-320lb OG Hayden Connor who comes with a gang of expierence starting and can play either Left or RG perfect for AZ zone heavy blocking system. Arizona has a few more talented interior guys and I do think as soon as Will Hernandez can pass a physical he resigns here but we will have Hernandez at LG this year and keep Adams at RG. This OL still has the talent to be one of the games best top 10 OL especially versus the run keeping defenses off balance.
I have a good feeling about this kid. He has a lot of expierence but dude is massive at 6”6-320 and moves well with his size. That said I think he will be a quality backup this season, and at RG I really think they resign Will Hernandez as soon as he can pass a physical but to start the season will start young 2nd mauler 6”5-325 Isaiah Adams. With his power and 35in long arms and ability to anchor he could be young Mike Iupati level dominant but a lot better than Mike in pass pro, and Adams consistently got better every single game last season with his last 3-4 starts posting PFF Grades in the mid 70s all of which I believe Carry’s over and he will be much better this year playing faster now that he’s comfortable in his offensive assignments in this offense. And of course at LG they have an above average excellent pass protecting OG who’s solid in the run game in Evan Brown who’s just an all around solid linemen.
We also have 2023 4th rd pick 6”4-320 uber John Gaines with his elite rare athleticism the 5th highest RAS score by a OG/C ever outta UCLA who’s career was setback by a torn ACL his rookie year he came back from last year. This year he will truly be back to himself with two full years in the system, wouldn’t shock me one bit if he turns heads and plays onto the roster playing a very high level. And then we have a borderline elite center who ranked 6th overall via PFF among Centers, and they added some studs as UDFA particularly the kid out of Ohio State who has OG written all over him I think the interior of this OL is a lot stronger than people realize, and they have one of the best tackle duos in the league with two high quality backup tackles. Arizona didn’t rank 4th run blocking/8th in pass pro via PFF for nothing last season they have quality talent up n down this OL and they’re all young for a change not 33yr old Has been a la Rodney Hudson.