Could the Cardinals find O-line help in the 2012 draft?

Clearly this season has not gone as planned for the
Arizona Cardinals.

The team stands at 1-6 with the 21st ranked offense and
29th ranked defense.

Obviously there are plenty of holes to fill, and some
could make the argument that almost every position needs
an upgrade, but one glaring weakness the Cards possess is
the offensive line. This season the line has allowed 24
sacks, second most in the NFL.

Not to be pessimistic or anything, but the Cardinals are
well on their way to earning a top five pick for the
second consecutive year.

So even though there are nine weeks left the season we
decided to look at the top offense linemen in next year’s
draft.

• USC OT Matt Kalil

Kalil has been compared to former number one pick Jake
Long. ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. and Todd McShay both rank him
as the best offensive lineman in the 2012 class, and both
have him number two on their big board. Only problem is if
Kiper and McShay are right then the Cardinals probably
won’t have the chance to draft the offensive tackle.
That’s because the Colts and Dolphins will probably have
the top two picks in the draft, since both currently sit
at 0-7 and are actually in worse condition than the
Cardinals.

• Stanford OT Jonathan Martin

ESPN Scouts Inc. currently ranks Martin as the seventh
overall prospect. Kiper ranks him sixth on his big board
and says he is a trusted blindside blocker for Andrew Luck
with good ability to get to the second level. McShay ranks
him seventh on his board. If Kalil is gone this could be
the best possible fit for the Cardinals, who could sit as
high as third in the draft.

• Iowa OT Riley Reiff

Reiff, yet another offensive tackle, ranks ninth on
Kiper’s board and 12th on McShay’s. One positive about
Reiff is that he has not missed a game at Iowa, which
shows his durability. Kiper writes that the Hawkeye moves
well and is effective at getting under the pads of
defenders and is another complete tackle expected to be
taken in the top ten.

• Georgia T/G Cordy Glenn

Now even though the above three players are all ranked in
Kiper and McShay’s top 32, Glenn is not. McShay doesn’t
rank Glenn but Kiper ranks him 16th. Kiper ranks the
current Bulldog 16th because of two factors: experience
and versatility. Glenn can play either tackle or guard,
which could make him valuable among NFL teams that shuffle
offensive linemen around, like the Cardinals.

• Stanford G David DeCastro

DeCastro is the second Stanford Cardinal to make the list
and while Kiper doesn’t rank him, McShay puts him at
number 20 on his top 32. McShay wrote that DeCastro is the
“most dominant” inside lineman in the nation. DeCastro is
an integral part of the Stanford O-line that helps the
team rush for an average of 219 yards per game. Could be a
perfect to open up holes for the between the tackles
running style of Beanie Wells.

• Oklahoma State OT Levy Adcock

Kiper ranks Adcock 25th on his big board. The 6-6, 322
pound senior is versatile with good footwork and movement.
Adcock’s biggest strength is his consistency, something a
struggling Cardinals offensive line has yet to find.

DeCastro, Reiff, Martin and Kalil are all underclassmen so
even though it’s expected they’ll come out, there is no
guarantee meaning that the top offensive lineman in next
year’s draft could be Cordy Glenn.

Remember, this is only a list of the top ranked offensive
linemen, the player’s that will most likely be taken in
the first two rounds — if not the first round alone.
There will be plenty more talent to pick from in the
following rounds.

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