Cardinals land Chop Robinson with 27th pick in latest Mel Kiper Jr. mock draft
Mar 19, 2024, 5:31 PM
Two picks in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft means the Arizona Cardinals have two chances at walking away with premium talent.
That’s just how ESPN analyst Mel Kiper Jr. drew it up in his most recent mock draft posted Tuesday.
As is common practice this mock draft season, Kiper has the Cardinals landing Ohio State wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. with the fourth overall pick this April.
No surprises there. Kiper has Arizona taking Harrison in each of his three mock drafts up to this point.
His pick for Arizona’s 27th overall is much more volatile.
After mocking Oklahoma’s Tyler Guyton and Missouri’s Darius Robinson to the Cardinals the past two times around, Kiper set his sights on Penn State pass rusher Chop Robinson.
I thought hard about interior offensive lineman Jackson Powers-Johnson (Oregon), who could be a plug-and-play guard starter in Arizona. But this Cardinals defense needs addressing. …
The 6-foot-3, 254-pound Robinson had an inconsistent 2023 season … but I love his explosion off the ball and his closing speed after he makes a move. He pops on tape every time I watch Penn State from the past two seasons. … This is right around the range in which teams will take a chance on high-upside prospects, and that’s Robinson.
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As Kiper mentioned, the Cardinals could use a boost defensively after recording just 33 sacks in 2024 (30th in the league) and allowing 143.2 rushing yards per game (32nd).
Leading the way for Arizona was linebacker Dennis Gardeck with six sacks to go along with seven tackles for loss.
Robinson meanwhile is coming off four sacks and 7.5 tackles for loss after posting 5.5 and 10, respectively, the year prior.
He stood out at the 2024 NFL Draft Combine, too, recording a 4.48-second 40-yard dash, a 10-foot, eight-inch broad jump and 34.5-inch vertical.
Part of the 6-foot-2, 254-pound pass rusher’s combine also included chatting with the Cardinals and other NFL teams.
What did Mel Kiper Jr. have to say about Marvin Harrison Jr.?
Kiper stated the obvious:
The Cardinals need help at wide receiver more than ever with Hollywood Brown off to Kansas City and Rondale Moore traded away to Atlanta.
No team needs a wide receiver as much as the Cardinals. Marquise Brown just signed a one-year deal with the Super Bowl champs, making second-year receiver Michael Wilson nominally the No. 1 guy for quarterback Kyler Murray. Luckily, Arizona is in a great spot to add one of my highest-graded wideout prospects of the past decade. The 6-foot-3 Harrison, my No. 2 overall prospect, has elite size, speed, hands and route-running ability — he has the tools to be a star. This fit makes perfect sense.
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