'With the twelfth pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, the Arizona Cardinals select..."
And that's where it gets tricky. The Cards have a number of different ways to use their first round pick this year, though much of their game plan will likely hinge on where other players fall before them in the draft. Sports Illustrated's Peter King has been trying to figure this out, and in his latest mock draft eventually settles on Stanford's David DeCastro as their first round choice.
Here is Peter King with the commentary:
When offensive line coach Russ Grimm sees DeCastro, he sees a young Russ Grimm: nasty, efficient, mistake-free. And though I'm sure that the Cardinals would love to see Michael Floyd fall to them here, the best guard to come out in several years is a good consolation prize, especially for a team that's had nothing but trouble on the O-line.
King hits the nail on the head with his analysis, knowing full well that as much as the Cardinals would like a playmaker like Floyd, their more pragmatic need is certainly the offensive line, and DeCastro is one of the brightest O-lineman this year by far.
For more news and notes on the Arizona Cardinals offseason, including the draft and upcoming training camps, make sure that you head over to Revenge of the Birds to get in on the action. For more on the draft n general, please check out Mocking the Draft.