Cardinals trade roundtable: Arizona lands WR Marquise Brown

The Arizona Cardinals made a big swing in the 2022 NFL Draft on Thursday night, swinging a deal to acquire wide receiver Marquise Brown and draft capital from the Baltimore Ravens for the 23rd pick.

After a slow roll through much of the offseason, it was quite the surprise to see general manager Steve Keim make such a big deal.

We asked our Arizona Sports hosts and editors what they thought of the deal and what the Cardinals need to focus on moving forward in the draft:

1. What was your initial reaction to the trade and how has it changed your perception of how this offseason has gone for Arizona?

Dave Burns, co-host of Burns & Gambo: Honestly, my first reaction was muted. The trade went down just as the Suns were starting their big final push to win the series against New Orleans. I was so focused on that moment and that team that I didn’t have the bandwidth to pay attention to that other moment for that other team. The Suns were the meal and the Brown trade was the desert I was too full to eat so I got a to-go box.

My first thought was Kyler Murray is going to be a happy man. That was probably my second and third thought as well. Surely there is some of that in this deal. The ability to control his costs, the idea that Steve Keim is better at trades than he is at drafting, the need for a WR and the fact they all went so very fast in the draft all went through my mind too. Mostly though, I thought of five straight years of big bold offseason moves for the Cards: Josh Rosen, Kyler, DeAndre Hopkins, J.J. Watt and now “Hollywood.” Good or bad, this organization has leaned into making the bold move.

Luke Lapinski, co-host of Wolf & Luke: They did it again. Steve Keim’s reputation as a drafter isn’t exactly the best in the NFL, but his track record on making big trades speaks for itself. He played to his strength, and that’s how you have success in this league. He also got a really good weapon who still has upside, plays a position the Cardinals needed help at and already has a great relationship with the guy who will be throwing him the ball. So, um, yeah. Good trade.

Tyler Drake, Cardinals reporter, co-host of Cardinals Corner: The first reaction reading the report was a double-take. Did I read that right? The Cardinals got Hollywood?

Steve Keim hit a home run in the first round by trading for a proven NFL wide receiver in Marquise “Hollywood” Brown. A need was undoubtedly filled in a major way. It’s hard to see a grouping of DeAndre Hopkins, Brown, A.J. Green and Rondale Moore not being successful in an offense that is built on spreading the ball around.

The best part? He and Kyler Murray go way back and were a dynamic duo across two years at Oklahoma. And if anything, it signals Murray’s contract extension is no doubt coming after the draft wraps. You don’t bring in a QB’s guy just to look the other way.

There is still much of the draft to be had, but the Cardinals are already making up for lost time this offseason. A few more holes filled and it’s onto OTAs.

Erik Ruby, afternoon contributor, co-host of Cardinals Corner: Embarrassingly, I saw some notifications on my phone that Marquise Brown was now a Cardinal and my first thought was: “Did I forget about a prospect?” Then when I came to my senses, I realized that Steve Keim just did what Steve Keim does best and that’s trade for established talent. Not only did Keim get someone who will undoubtedly be dynamic on the field, but someone that Kyler Murray has a close relationship with. Oh, and on top of all of that, they also received a third-round pick as well. My initial reaction was the same as it is now: This was a heis

Kevin Zimmerman, ArizonaSports.com lead editor: The top of the draft starting with a relatively unproductive college player said a bit about how meh this class is, and it’s clear by the twice-traded 23rd overall pick that the talent dropoff in the middle of the first-round was also very real. The Cardinals addressed a position of need with a known commodity, made their apparently upset quarterback happy and still got a pick back to take another shot. Considering the rookie contract, it’s a solid win-now move.

Jake Anderson, ArizonaSports.com editor: Steve Keim said it best: “Surprise, surprise.” The Cardinals were clearly thinking wide receiver in the first round given the GM’s comments about the board not falling in their favor, with five WRs going in the top 18 picks. It’s a home run of a trade for the Cardinals, who get a proven NFL wideout who already has familiarity with Kyler Murray. Did you expect anything else from Keim given his track history?

1. What position do the Cardinals need to target with their next pick?

Burns: At this point, it could be anything or anyone. Edge? Surely that is the most glaring right now. They replaced Christian Kirk last night but they haven’t replaced Chandler Jones. Corner? Offensive Line? Never a bad idea to have as many of those as possible. But I’ll circle back to edge. Daniel Jeremiah says he loves 20 of them in the draft? Let’s hope there are a couple left for the Cards to choose from at 55. Oh and don’t be surprised at all if they use one of their third-rounders to move back and get more picks in the fourth and fifth rounds.

Lapinski: At this point, an edge rusher is the pretty clear need above every other position. I wouldn’t force it if there was a much better corner or defensive lineman on the board when they pick, but this draft is still loaded with pass rushers. There should be a good one there at No. 55.

Drake: For me, it has to be a pass rusher. A whole lot of talent is still on the board and Arizona needs to ride their Day 1 momentum into Day 2 with a starting-caliber EDGE to pair with Markus Golden. Outside of pass rusher, I could also see running back — Kenneth Walker III sticks out — or cornerback — Andrew Booth is still on the board, surprisingly.

Ruby: The No. 1 position of need for the Cardinals right now is EDGE and I think there are couple players that could fall to them. However, I believe a trade would be a better option to fill that hole and the name I have my eyes on instead is Breece Hall. While the RB might not be on the board long, if Arizona has the chance to add ANOTHER dynamic weapon to this offense, I’m not sure any defense will want to take the field against them this season.

Zimmerman: Since we’re talking about win-now mode: Get the most elite-twitch outside linebacker out there, let Vance Joseph simplify the game for him with a simplified, unique package to get him on the field this year.

Anderson: Because the Cardinals have now solved one of the bigger question marks heading into the 2022 season, Arizona needs to look on the other side and get either an edge rusher to replace franchise sack leader Chandler Jones or a cornerback to help solidify Vance Joseph’s secondary. And with Keim getting a third-rounder (No. 100) back in the Brown deal, the GM could use his second-round pick (No. 55) and other third-rounder (No. 87) to take any combination of an EDGE, DB, DL, OL — there are still some good ones left — or maybe even RB Kenneth Walker III to pair up with James Conner.

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