As I have stated previously the Cardinals seem to be wandering in no man’s land as an NFL franchise. They have hired a rookie head coach, are in line to start a QB who has been a backup for essentially his whole career and they play in likely the toughest division in the NFL. They have borderline elite to elite personnel on the offensive side of things outside of their QB spot while new head coach Mike LaFleur seems to be a strong hire with an offensive background. If QB Jacoby Brissett proves to be a starting caliber NFL QB, the offense could be electric and explosive next season. However, the defense will have to hold up its end of the bargain as well under defensive coordinator Nick Rallis who is heading into his fourth season as the defensive coordinator of the team. The defense despite him having a defensive minded head coach in those three years has been very subpar and the Arizona front office must still believe in him to bring him back despite his lack of progress. Outside of Rallis’ coaching on the defensive side of things, the personnel that Arizona has defensively will also loom quite large as well. Here I will go into detail assessing the front seven personnel of Arizona as the 2026 season approaches.
Set to start at the first edge defender spot is veteran Josh Sweat who has proven to be a highly effective professional thus far in the NFL. Sweat, in every season outside of his essential rookie year has graded in the well above average to elite range in terms of an overall defense grade among players at his position according to Pro Football Focus. Sweat has made a Pro Bowl and is a former Super Bowl champion with the Eagles.
Set to start at the first interior defensive line spot for Arizona is veteran Roy Lopez who has shown a high ceiling in the NFL but lacks consistency and might be better suited as a backup. Lopez in five seasons in the NFL has graded in the above average range among players at his position only twice, although well above average both times. However, perhaps I am overstating his inconsistencies as two of his down years came in the first two seasons of his career, and after that he has been above average most of the time.
Slated to start at the next interior defensive line spot is 2025 1st rounder Walter Nolen III who is coming off a very strong rookie season albeit in limited snaps. Nolen III was a great college player and played at a borderline elite level as a rookie. If Nolen III continues on this trajectory, then he is in line to become one of the premier defensive players in the NFL.
2024 1st rounder Darius Robinson is set to start at the next edge defender spot for Arizona and has really disappointed thus far in the NFL although he still has time to grow. Robinson, played at a poor level in limited rookie snaps and then played even worse in year 2 in the NFL taking about 500 snaps. Despite Robinson’s consistent poor play thus far, Mike LaFleur and Nick Rallis still have him listed as the starter and must believe that with more experience that he can live up to his first-round draft billing or at least prove to be a starting caliber player.
2025 4th rounder Cody Simon is set to start at the first of the linebacker spots for the Cardinals and is coming off a solid rookie season. In about 500 snaps worth of action as a rookie, Simon graded (61/94) in terms of an overall defense grade among his peers, below average but still not bad for a rookie. Simon is in line to build off of it going into year 2 in the NFL and become a solid starter if not more than that for Arizona.
Former Alabama standout Mack Wilson Sr is set to start at the next linebacker spot for the Cardinals and is a player with a very high ceiling but a player who has been far too inconsistent in his career. Wilson Sr got off to an abysmal start to his career, grading as one of the worst linebackers in the NFL in each of his first two seasons in the league. Wilson Sr in year 3 however graded as one of the top linebackers in the NFL albeit in limited reserve snaps. Then in year 4 he again graded as one of the worst players at his position, while in year 5 he again graded in the elite range among players at his position again albeit in limited snaps. Mack Wilson Sr has played much more over the past few seasons, and his level of play has evened out as he has consistently graded in the slightly below average range among his peers in each of the past two seasons, taking over 500 snaps each year. Wilson Sr offers the Cardinals some high-end capabilities at linebacker although he is very inconsistent.
Former first rounder Zaven Collins rounds out the Arizona starting front seven and is consistently a strong player. Collins has not quite lived up to his first-round draft billing as he has never made a Pro Bowl, but he has been consistently very good thus far in the NFL. Collins after the initial essential rookie portion of his career, has graded in the well above average range among players at his position every season since. Perhaps Collins could soon warrant a Pro Bowl selection eventually if he keeps it up or improves his level of play.
From a depth standpoint on the defensive front the Cardinals have some notable names that can provide the team with some high-end depth and/or eventually step into the starting lineup for the team. 2025 3rd rounder Jordan Burch really struggled as a rookie but was taken relatively high and could come into his own and live up to his high draft billing with more experience. Interior defensive lineman Andrew Billings was consistently an above average to a well above average player on a year in year out basis before a down year in 2025. Linebacker Jack Gibbens has graded in the well above average to elite range among players at his position in every season outside of his rookie year. While 2023 2nd rounder BJ Ojulari had a solid rookie season but did not play in 2024 and struggled in 2025 coming off his injury. However, given his high draft selection and still solid rookie campaign, he could put it all together and live up to his high draft billing going forward.
The Cardinals have a very talented front seven that indeed has its question marks however, but the Cardinals could easily have one of the premier front sevens in the sport next season. A breakdown of the Cardinals’ front seven heading into 2026 can be found below.
2026 Cardinals’ Projected Front Seven
LDE – Josh Sweat – B+ to A-
LDT – Roy Lopez – C+ to B-, could grade higher as he becomes more consistent
RDT – Walter Nolen III – 2025 1st rounder, B+ to A- in limited rookie snaps
RDE – Darius Robinson – 2024 1st rounder, poor in NFL so far, could start to come into own soon
WLB – Cody Simon – 2025 4th rounder, C as rookie
MLB – Mack Wilson Sr – C+ to B-, very high ceiling, inconsistent
SLB – Zaven Collins – B to B+
2026 Notable Cardinals’ Reserve Front Seven PlayersÂ
ED – Jordan Burch – 2025 3rd rounder, poor as rookie however
DT – Andrew Billings – B to B-
LB – Jack Gibbens – B to B+
LB – BJ Ojulari – 2023 2nd rounder, solid rookie season, has struggled since, perhaps primarily due to health
