2019 NFL Mock Draft: Projecting the first round after Week 7
By Phil Poling
DT. Houston. Ed Oliver. 1. player. 32.
The Arizona Cardinals should be completely absorbed in a rebuild by the time the 2019 NFL Draft rolls around. Their first-round pick from the 2018 draft, Josh Rosen, will be the offensive focus moving forward; adding Houston’s Ed Oliver would give them a defensive stalwart.
The 6-foot-3 junior has dominated while at Houston, compiling 178 tackles, 10.5 sacks, and 45 tackles for loss, basically living in opponent’s backfields. This is a presence the Cardinals are desperate for along the interior defensive line, especially in a division with players like Jared Goff, Todd Gurley, and Russell Wilson.
Oliver earned First-Team All-America honors from nearly every outlet in 2017, including Walter Camp, AFCA, Phil Steele – and the list goes on. The American Athletic Conference named Oliver the 2017 Defensive Player of the Year after he tallied 78 tackles and 16.5 tackles for loss.
The Cardinals have an excellent opportunity to add a game-changer defensively to their roster in the early parts of the 2019 NFL Draft. If it’s Oliver, expect he and Rosen to bet the faces of the franchise for the next 10 years.