Arizona Cardinals select Deone Bucannon with first-round pick
May 9, 2014, 3:20 AM | Updated: 4:54 am
The Arizona Cardinals have tabbed Washington State defensive back Deone Bucannon with the No. 27 overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft. The Cardinals originally had the No. 20 pick before moving back to No. 27 in a trade with the New Orleans Saints.
Bucannon, a 6-foot-1, 216-pound safety out of Washington State, ran a 4.48 40-yard dash to go along with a 36.5 inch vertical jump at the NFL Combine. Safety was one of the Cardinals’ biggest defensive needs heading into the draft.
“Not only do we feel like we filled a specific need, but we fill it with a player who we’ve targeted for quite some time,” Cardinals general manager Steve Keim said. “Deone Bucannon is a very talented guy.”
Known as an imposing, physical defender, Bucannon intercepted six passes last season to go along with 114 tackles, including 4.5 tackles for loss and three forced fumbles.
Bucannon becomes the first safety taken by the Cardinals in the first round since they selected Ken Greene out of Washington State with No. 19 pick in the 1978 NFL Draft.
“It’s a whirlwind. I looked on the board and saw Arizona and there is no other place that I want to be,” Bucannon said in a conference call. “I went on 20 different visits, and Arizona was by far the place that I wanted to go to.”
