As stated previously, the Cardinals seem to be in no man’s land as a franchise as of now as they lack a franchise QB, are on a rookie head coach, and are playing in likely the toughest division in the sport today. The hope that the Cardinals have to be a potential playoff team next season is if they can just be explosive offensively under the offensive minded LaFleur and the borderline elite to elite personnel the team has on offense. The personnel that the Cardinals have on offense outside of the QB spot is among the best in the sport today and here I will go into detail assessing the skill position personnel of the team as the 2026 season approaches.
At running back, the team projects to have one of the premier units in the sport next season. The team drafted running back Jeremiyah Love with the third overall pick in the 2026 draft who was considered a generational type of running back prospect. Love won the award for being the best overall running back in college football last year and earned himself unanimous All-American honors during the 2025 season as well. Love is on a short list of only a handful of running backs in league history who have been taken that high and he projects to be a potential superstar on the NFL level.
The Cardinals also have one of the deepest running back units in the NFL as they have three players who can play at a high level even as potential starters behind Love on the depth chart. Veteran James Conner is a two-time Pro Bowler who graded as a top five overall running back according to Pro Football Focus in three of the past four seasons prior to an injury riddled 2025 campaign. Conner will play next season at the age of 31 coming off a major injury but will no longer have to presume the leading running back duties and can now thrive in a supplementary role to Love out of the backfield. The Cardinals also acquired running back Tyler Allgeier from the Falcons who before a down year in 2025, was perhaps the premier #2 back in the NFL. Allgeier graded as a top ten overall back in terms of an overall offense grade among his peers in each of his first three NFL seasons before grading in the middle of the pack in that department during the 2025 season. While 2024 3rd rounder Trey Benson has looked strong in very limited NFL snaps thus far and is perhaps the premier #4 back in the NFL as of now.
At tight end the team is led by standout Trey McBride who has emerged as one of the premier tight ends in the NFL. McBride, the 2022 2nd rounder, struggled as a rookie but has since graded as a top six overall tight end according to Pro Football Focus for three straight seasons since, amassing two straight 1000-yard seasons as well. We could perhaps see McBride emerge as the best tight end in the NFL as he is set to play his first season under an offensive minded head coach. The team has solid but not spectacular depth behind McBride at tight end. 2024 3rd round tight end Tip Reiman is the only noteworthy backup and has hardly had the chance to play in the NFL thus far but could prove to be a high-end backup and live up to his high draft billing if given the chance.
At wide receiver the Cardinals have talent, but question marks and the unit could be very good but does not feel as strong as the tight end or running back room of the team. The Cardinals are led in the unit by Marvin Harrison Jr who was viewed as one of the top receiving prospects entering the NFL in league history, being taken 4th overall. Harrison Jr had a very strong rookie season and was in line to live up to those lofty expectations after year 1 in the NFL. However, Harrison Jr regressed badly in year 2, grading in the below average range among his peers, while struggling with his health, as Arizona struggled on the offensive side of things in totality as well. Perhaps Harrison Jr can put it all together in year 3 in the NFL and emerge as one of the premier wide receivers in the NFL like he was on pace to do entering the NFL and after his rookie season as well.
2023 3rd rounder Michael Wilson is currently the #2 wide out for the Cardinals and is coming off a career year. Wilson, as a relatively high draft pick, struggled in his first two seasons in the NFL, grading in the below average range among his peers both seasons according to Pro Football Focus. However, Wilson looked very strong during the 2025 season, amassing over 1000 yards and grading in the well above average range among his peers. This was despite Arizona in 2025 having very subpar offensive circumstances in totality, perhaps Wilson can breakout as a star heading into his first year under an offensive minded head coach. The Cardinals however lack depth behind Harrison Jr and Wilson at wide out and those two will likely need to stay healthier for Arizona next season.
Overall, the Cardinals could have one of the premier groupings of skill position players in the NFL next season. They have one of the premier if not the premier running back unit in the NFL, one of the best tight ends in the NFL, a generationally gifted wide receiver, and an emerging #2 wide receiver. Arizona is not without their concerns in their skill position grouping however, as James Conners is getting older coming off a major injury, Jeremiyah Love will still be a rookie next season, and the team lacks depth at tight end and at wide receiver. A breakdown of the Arizona skill position players heading into the 2026 season can be found below.
2026 Notable Cardinals’ Running Backs
HB – Jeremiyah Love – 2026 3rd overall pick, generationally gifted running back
HB – James Conner – B+ to A-, one of premier backs in the NFL when healthy and on his A game
HB – Tyler Allgeier – B+ to A-, likely the best #2 back in the NFL for years with the Falcons
HB – Trey Benson – C+ to B-, perhaps best #4 back in the NFL, could be #1 or #2 back for numerous NFL teams
2026 Notable Cardinals’ Tight Ends
TE – Trey McBride – A
TE – Tip Reiman – 2024 3rd rounder, hardly played so far in NFL
2026 Notable Cardinals’ Wide Receivers
WR – Marvin Harrison Jr – B- so far, 2024 4th overall pick, generationally gifted wide receiver, very strong rookie season, sophomore slump
WR – Michael Wilson – B-, 2023 3rd rounder, career year in 2025 after struggling first two seasons, could now consistently emerge as very strong WR2
