The No. 3 pick looms for the Arizona Cardinals in the upcoming 2023 NFL Draft.

With a top-5 selection, the likelihood of adding a franchise-altering player is high but certainly not a given.

For most of the offseason, two names have been heavily linked to the Cardinals in Georgia defensive lineman Jalen Carter and Alabama linebacker Will Anderson Jr.

But forcing his way into the conversation of late has been Texas Tech edge rusher Tyree Wilson.

Even before the news on Wednesday of Carter’s arrest warrant for reckless driving and racing, Wilson was considered a prospect to keep an eye on for Arizona at No. 3.

And it’s not lost on Wilson that the Cardinals are looking for pieces to jumpstart their turnaround back to relevancy.

“Arizona has a new head coach, new GM and I’d be excited to play for that and start the rebuild of Arizona,” Wilson told reporters at the 2023 NFL Draft Combine on Wednesday.

Wilson may not be getting the same type of hype as a Carter or an Anderson, but that’s not to say the Red Raider didn’t produce off the edge at Texas Tech.

After an impressive seven-sack, 13.5-tackles-for-loss effort his junior year, Wilson doubled down as a senior in 2022 (10 games) behind seven sacks and 14 TFLs to go along with a forced fumble and 61 tackles, another career high.

It’s a credit to his hard work put in during his four-year college career between Texas A&M (2019) and Texas Tech (2020-22), and the information he’s gleaned from some of the best in the game, including a former Cardinal.

“I idolize a lot of pass rushers, because every pass rusher is different,” Wilson said. “I’ll look at J.J. Watt — he can play inside and outside. Myles Garrett’s disruptive and Von Miller just because his hands are so great. He’s a great pass rusher on the edge.”

Having a massive wingspan doesn’t hurt, either.

I did it. I asked Tyree Wilson to show off his wingspan. Stretches the length of the NFL Scouting Combine banner behind him on the podium. 86”. @nflnetwork pic.twitter.com/Qog0vMlQ6f

— StaceyDales (@StaceyDales) March 1, 2023

While Wilson won’t work out or test at the combine while recovering from a foot injury, the edge still plans to meet with teams this week, one of which was the Cardinals on Wednesday.

They’re not the only ones utilizing the combine to sit down with Wilson, though, with the Chicago Bears, New England Patriots, Atlanta Falcons and Las Vegas Raiders also meeting with the edge, he told reporters.

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