Is the Cardinals lack of offense in NFL draft concerning?

GLENDALE – Arizona Cardinals are being clocked as one of the biggest winners of the 2025 NFL draft, with the team addressing many of the holes defensively that plagued them a year ago. General manager Monti Ossenfort spent six of Arizona’s seven picks on the defensive side of the ball, priming for a big bounce-back year. However, Ossenfort’s lone offensive player was in the sixth round for Texas guard Hayden Conner , marking no skills position being drafted for the offense.

Wide receiver was seen as just as a big of need for the franchise as the defense, which begs the question of how will head coach Jonathan Gannon and quarterback Kyler Murray respond. Cardinals next move to improve offense: The Cardinals offense in 2024 was quite an improvement over the past few years. Arizona per game ranked 11th in yards (358.



2), 12 in scoring (23.5), and seventh in rushing yards (144.2).

The biggest weakness was the passing game, averaging 214.1 yards per game, 18th in the NFL. The emergence of Pro Bowl tight end Trey McBride overshadowed the lack of offensive weapons that Murray had to operate within the passing game.

Marvin Harrison Jr. had a superb rookie season, amassing 885 receiving yards, the fifth most for a rookie in 2024. Besides the heroics of McBride and Harrison Jr.

, there was a steep drop-off in talent. The 2nd-year Cardinals receiver finished with back-to-back 500+ yard seasons, but no other receiver surpassed 350+ yards. Murray had the most single-season passing yards since 2020 but still hasn’t surpassed 4,000 in his career.

The 27-year-old appeared in every regular season game for the first time since his second season and has stayed healthy, much to Arizona’s delight. However, the franchise didn’t reward Murray with new talent heading into 2025. In the past few seasons, the front office has tried to accommodate Murray by going out and trading for receivers like “Hollywood” Brown, Robbie Anderson, and DeAndre Hopkins, but all have flared out of the valley.

Could the franchise try that same strategy and trade for an established receiver? Yes, but the more likely answer would be Ossenfort looking for a gem in the undrafted free-agent market and for Gannon to develop into a top target for Murray. Familiarity helps, as the team retained Greg Dortch on a one-year tender. 2025 will be Dortch’s fifth year with Murray, the longest-tenured receiver on the roster.

For the past few years, the Cardinals have dealt with constant personnel changes, either injuries to top players like Murray or coaching and front office changes. Next season will be Gannon and Ossenfort’s third season with the franchise, which is when results are expected for a new regime. Consistency hasn’t been a given for Murray.

However, he’s always endured the constant changing of the guard, whether teammates or coaches. The 2025 season will be the third year for Murray in Gannon’s system. Murray’s current trajectory is setting him up to have the best season of his career despite the lack of new offensive talent this offseason.

This article first appeared on Burn City Sports and was syndicated with permission..