2009 Draft: Three years later.

[A fan who cares]

I already posted this analysis on another thread because someone thought it's only wise to judge a draft 3 years after the fact. I know this topic may have come up earlier in the off-season, but since it's post-draft 2012 I thought I would give it a shot.

Here it is:
Beanie Wells 31 RB: Very good value for being in the back of the 1st round, he has shown to be what everyone predicted he would be: a productive downhill runner that gets hurt. When he is in the games and at least healthy enough to play, he can be very good in the running game. He is also improving at pass pro and ball protection. His future seems bright if he can stay healthy. Ryan Williams was drafted the following year to split a portion of the carries with him so he wouldn't have as much risk to go down. He's not elite but he gets more than the job done. Grade: A-

Cody Brown 63 OLB: This pick may be the result of having a low 2nd rounder, but this dude never panned out. I think he got cut in 2010? Either way, he is no longer on this team and took the spot of someone that could potentially have been contributing. Grade: F

Rashad Johnson 95 S: A defensive captain at Alabama and the perceived replacement of A-dub/the FS position. He struggled his first couple years but has improved in zone coverage. He tackles well in the pros and has the speed to get around. Of course, he isn't is good as A-dub or Rolle/Rhodes are, but he still can get better and is showing he can. Unfortunately I don't think he has shown he can be a 16 game starter but he should be a very solid backup and starter whenever the guy ahead of him is down. Grade: C+

Greg Toler 131 CB: Towards the end of his rookie year he showed he could be physical in the corner position and cover decently. I'm sure Ray Horton loved this guy when he met him. His second year was decent also, but he kept improving despite maintaining coverage, waiting for the poor pass rush. He got injured last year but is poised to have a great comeback. Grade: Incomplete or a tentative 'B'

Herman Johnson 167 OG: I guess I must have been out of town when this guy was cut because I do not remember this player. 5th round picks are usually situational players, projects, depth, or special teamers. I guess he never lasted through camp. Grade: D- because at least they addressed the O-line. In a round that is otherwise a crap shoot.

Will Davis 204 OLB: Another crap shoot pick that didn't pan out. He was a back up for awhile, but I guess he got cut. He's no longer on the team contributing so I give this pick a Grade: F

LaRod Stephens-Howling 240 RB: If you watched the 2009 pre-season, you knew this guy was going to make the team right then. He played backup to now Eagles starting RB (his name escapes me) but that didn't stop the Cards from taking a chance on him. The 'Hyphen' makes all sorts of Special teams plays and also is an excellent receiver on Offense, most notably the 2011 Cowboy Overtime win. Grade: A

Trevor Canfield 254 OG: See Herman Johnson.

Overall Grade: C+ because of the two Running Backs in Wells and Howling. I half-way factored in Toler, who can raise this overall grade to a B or B- if he has a stellar year in 2012. Rashad Johnson seems to be the face of the 2009 draft: not to good, not to bad.

 

[Folster]

It think this draft was the start of the change in drafting philosophy, focusing on BPA instead of need.

 

[jefftheshark]

I already posted this analysis on another thread because someone thought it's only wise to judge a draft 3 years after the fact. I know this topic may have come up earlier in the off-season, but since it's post-draft 2012 I thought I would give it a shot.

Here it is:
Beanie Wells 31 RB: Very good value for being in the back of the 1st round, he has shown to be what everyone predicted he would be: a productive downhill runner that gets hurt. When he is in the games and at least healthy enough to play, he can be very good in the running game. He is also improving at pass pro and ball protection. His future seems bright if he can stay healthy. Ryan Williams was drafted the following year to split a portion of the carries with him so he wouldn't have as much risk to go down. He's not elite but he gets more than the job done. Grade: A-

Cody Brown 63 OLB: This pick may be the result of having a low 2nd rounder, but this dude never panned out. I think he got cut in 2010? Either way, he is no longer on this team and took the spot of someone that could potentially have been contributing. Grade: F

Rashad Johnson 95 S: A defensive captain at Alabama and the perceived replacement of A-dub/the FS position. He struggled his first couple years but has improved in zone coverage. He tackles well in the pros and has the speed to get around. Of course, he isn't is good as A-dub or Rolle/Rhodes are, but he still can get better and is showing he can. Unfortunately I don't think he has shown he can be a 16 game starter but he should be a very solid backup and starter whenever the guy ahead of him is down. Grade: C+

Greg Toler 131 CB: Towards the end of his rookie year he showed he could be physical in the corner position and cover decently. I'm sure Ray Horton loved this guy when he met him. His second year was decent also, but he kept improving despite maintaining coverage, waiting for the poor pass rush. He got injured last year but is poised to have a great comeback. Grade: Incomplete or a tentative 'B'

Herman Johnson 167 OG: I guess I must have been out of town when this guy was cut because I do not remember this player. 5th round picks are usually situational players, projects, depth, or special teamers. I guess he never lasted through camp. Grade: D- because at least they addressed the O-line. In a round that is otherwise a crap shoot.

Will Davis 204 OLB: Another crap shoot pick that didn't pan out. He was a back up for awhile, but I guess he got cut. He's no longer on the team contributing so I give this pick a Grade: F

LaRod Stephens-Howling 240 RB: If you watched the 2009 pre-season, you knew this guy was going to make the team right then. He played backup to now Eagles starting RB (his name escapes me) but that didn't stop the Cards from taking a chance on him. The 'Hyphen' makes all sorts of Special teams plays and also is an excellent receiver on Offense, most notably the 2011 Cowboy Overtime win. Grade: A

Trevor Canfield 254 OG: See Herman Johnson.

Overall Grade: C+ because of the two Running Backs in Wells and Howling. I half-way factored in Toler, who can raise this overall grade to a B or B- if he has a stellar year in 2012. Rashad Johnson seems to be the face of the 2009 draft: not to good, not to bad.

Just for grins, here's what Mel Kiper had to say about the Cards 2009 draft. Goes to show his crystal ball is about as good as mine.

[URL="http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/clubhouse?team=ari"][URL="http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/clubhouse?team=ari"]Arizona Cardinals[/URL][/URL]: GRADE: B+
Chris Wells was a major acquisition for the Cardinals in the first round of this draft. He was a bargain for a team that was in dire need of a running back to rotate in with second-year back Tim Hightower. Wells gives this team the home run threat that the running game was sorely lacking last season. In addition to Wells, I liked the Cody Brown pick in the second round because he should be a good 3-4 rushing end in the Cardinals' system. Bringing in LSU offensive lineman Herman Johnson in the fifth round and Illinois defensive end Will Davis in the sixth were good pickups for this organization. While I thought Johnson was a bit overrated, he is huge and will give the line a big presence when he's on the field.

Then there's Pete Prisco's team-by-team grades, he wasn't that far off


Arizona Cardinals analysis

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Best pick: Third-round pick Rashard Johnson is a rangy safety who has good instincts. He won't start, but should be a good special-teams player.
Questionable move: Not trading up to get Donald Brown. He fit their offense better than Beanie Wells.
Second-day gem: Greg Toler. Taken in the fourth round, this corner from St. Paul College has loads of physical skill.
This is an organization that has turned the corner when it comes to drafting.

B-

JTS

 

[52brandon]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/clubhouse?team=arihttp://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/clubhouse?team=ariArizona Cardinals: GRADE: B+
Chris Wells was a major acquisition for the Cardinals in the first round of this draft. He was a bargain for a team that was in dire need of a running back to rotate in with second-year back Tim Hightower. Wells gives this team the home run threat that the running game was sorely lacking last season. In addition to Wells, I liked the Cody Brown pick in the second round because he should be a good 3-4 rushing end in the Cardinals' system. Bringing in LSU offensive lineman Herman Johnson in the fifth round and Illinois defensive end Will Davis in the sixth were good pickups for this organization. While I thought Johnson was a bit overrated, he is huge and will give the line a big presence when he's on the field.

Then there's Pete Prisco's team-by-team grades, he wasn't that far off


Arizona Cardinals analysis

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Best pick: Third-round pick Rashard Johnson is a rangy safety who has good instincts. He won't start, but should be a good special-teams player. nope
Questionable move: Not trading up to get Donald Brown. He fit their offense better than Beanie Wells. who's Donald Brown?
Second-day gem: Greg Toler. Taken in the fourth round, this corner from St. Paul College has loads of physical skill. I really like Toler. If he comes back 100%, he may be our best pick
This is an organization that has turned the corner when it comes to drafting.

B-

JTS

eh, not the best crystal ball. Decent enough draft though. And they've only improved IMO

 

[kerouac9]

I love Beanie and am one of his staunchest defenders on this board, but you can't give his draft choice an A- because you like him.

Case against Beanie as an A- selection:
- 16 starts in 3 NFL seasons
- Was unable to clearly unseat Tim Hightower for the starting job in 2 years
- Cards felt compelled to draft Ryan Williams toward the top of the second round to compete with Wells
- Still needs to develop his pass blocking technique and choices

I'm fine with giving Beanie a "B", but you can't be an "exceptional" player when you can't beat Tim Hightower out of a job in 2 years.

I'd add against Rashad Johnson that if you're a third-round pick and you're not starting heading into your third year, you're a screw-up. The Cards have been trying to brush Johnson under the rug since minicamps when they realized that Nick Saban had sold them a complete bill of goods. At best that selection deserves a D+.

Johnson was so awful we needed to use a 2nd round pick to trade for Kerry Rhodes because he was so awful his rookie season in practice and limited game exposure.

 

[Phrazbit]

I dont agree with the B for Tolar either. He looked decent in very limited time as a rookie, then in 2010 became a starter and spent the season getting lit up like a Christmas tree (he got a lot of tackles because he gave an up insane amount of catches) and missed 2011 due to injury.

I'd give him a very kind C-, at best I'd call him 'incomplete' since he was injured and hasnt played in a defense that supposedly suits him better.

 

[Cbus cardsfan]

Let's face it, almost all drafts are going to graded, or re-graded, on how the 1st rounder turns out. I'd give Wells a B+. He's had a pretty good impact in 2 of his 3 years. He obviously hasn't attained star status but has been overall pretty solid. As for the others;
Cody Brown; wow a 2nd rounder that didn't pan out. What a shocker-F
RJ: Showed some strides this year but still disappointing- C-
Toler: still all potential and alot to prove- C
Johnson: no work ethic- D-
Davis: saw some PT and injuries derailed any chance he had. Not a bad pick- B-.
LSH: great pick- A+
Canfield: meh

 

[Vermont Maverick]

Johnson was so awful we needed to use a 2nd round pick to trade for Kerry Rhodes because he was so awful his rookie season in practice and limited game exposure.

I'm not defending Johnson, however we traded a 4th for Kerry Rhodes (and a low 4th at that), not a 2nd.

I'm usually a "KoolAider"... but the 2009 draft was not good. And it could have been worse. We wanted Donald Brown because of the "offense fit" mentioned by Kiper. Fortunately, Indy took him because he also fit their offense. At least Beanie has been somewhat productive - but he can't stay on the field. Cody Brown was a terrible pick. Interestingly both "Browns" played for UConn. They had a few high picks that year.

The Toler pick is still up in the air. But given the obvious signs that we were looking DB in the draft, followed by our selection of Fleming in the 3rd, and Bethel in the 6th, as well as two free agent pickups, I think the writing is on the wall for him and Johnson.

We got minor production out of Will Davis, and 7th rounder LSH saved this draft from being utterly horrible.

After the 2012 season, we will only have Beanie and LSH remaining, and there's a good chance at least one of those will not make it to 2013.

 

[JeffGollin]

First of all, it doesn't always take 3 years to "know" (For example, PP21 demonstrated his creds a bit quicker).

Second, one person's A- is another's C+. (For example, Beanie may deserve a B+ in the absolute, but in terms of expectations - i.e. "a younger embodiment of Edgerrin James - he might only deserve an "incomplete" or a gentleman's C.

Third, injuries can screw up a draft. If you're evaluating a draft strictly as "it is what it is", you might downgrade the Wadsworth draft because he got injured. But if you take the position that "bleep happens", you might cut the FO some slack for "bad luck."

To me, Beanie, Toler and LSH were OK picks. (Wells still has more to prove; Toler is underrated and LSH the most pleasant surprise albeit in a sharply confined role. Rashad still has one more year to prove something. The rest - Kablooie. How you grade this according to acceptable standards for other NFL teams - I don't know. My guess - semi-decent but somewhat underwhelming.

 

[A fan who cares]

I'm not defending Johnson, however we traded a 4th for Kerry Rhodes (and a low 4th at that), not a 2nd.

I'm usually a "KoolAider"... but the 2009 draft was not good. And it could have been worse. We wanted Donald Brown because of the "offense fit" mentioned by Kiper. Fortunately, Indy took him because he also fit their offense. At least Beanie has been somewhat productive - but he can't stay on the field. Cody Brown was a terrible pick. Interestingly both "Browns" played for UConn. They had a few high picks that year.

The Toler pick is still up in the air. But given the obvious signs that we were looking DB in the draft, followed by our selection of Fleming in the 3rd, and Bethel in the 6th, as well as two free agent pickups, I think the writing is on the wall for him and Johnson.

We got minor production out of Will Davis, and 7th rounder LSH saved this draft from being utterly horrible.

After the 2012 season, we will only have Beanie and LSH remaining, and there's a good chance at least one of those will not make it to 2013.

I can't find it now but I read somewhere that an NFL.com analysis thought the 2009 draft was one of the worst ones in a while. Just look at the top ten picks and tell me how many of them aren't close to being all-stars (yet?).

Detroit Lions Matthew Stafford QB
St. Louis Rams Jason Smith OT
Kansas City Chiefs Tyson Jackson DE
Seattle Seahawks Aaron Curry LB
New York Jets Mark Sanchez QB
Cincinnati Bengals Andre Smith OT
Oakland Raiders Darrius Heyward-Bey WR
Jacksonville Jaguars Eugene Monroe OT
Green Bay Packers B. J. Raji* DT
San Francisco 49ers Michael Crabtree WR

*=ProBowler since the draft

 

[Capital Card]

For a draft to get an A rating, it must have three starters in it, three years out. I only see one starter in Wells (who may get beat out this year), and possibly a second in Toler. LSH keeps this draft from being a sold D in my book.

I'll rate it a C-.

Go Cards!!!

 

[Duckjake]

I'm not defending Johnson, however we traded a 4th for Kerry Rhodes (and a low 4th at that), not a 2nd.

I'm usually a "KoolAider"... but the 2009 draft was not good. And it could have been worse. We wanted Donald Brown because of the "offense fit" mentioned by Kiper. Fortunately, Indy took him because he also fit their offense. At least Beanie has been somewhat productive - but he can't stay on the field. Cody Brown was a terrible pick. Interestingly both "Browns" played for UConn. They had a few high picks that year.

The Toler pick is still up in the air. But given the obvious signs that we were looking DB in the draft, followed by our selection of Fleming in the 3rd, and Bethel in the 6th, as well as two free agent pickups, I think the writing is on the wall for him and Johnson.

We got minor production out of Will Davis, and 7th rounder LSH saved this draft from being utterly horrible.

After the 2012 season, we will only have Beanie and LSH remaining, and there's a good chance at least one of those will not make it to 2013.

That's a real indication of how fast the rosters turn over in the NFL. The Cardinals media guides used to mark players still on the roster in red in their draft history section. Every year the previous two years drafts would be almost all red. Then it would drop to maybe half in year 3 and only 1 or 2 in year 4.

It's not any different now. We only have 3 players still on the roster from the 2005-2008 drafts. 3 out of 26 selections. 2005 and 2006 would be all black. Only 6 total from all drafts prior to 2009.

Can we say they were all poor drafts? I don't think so when we won 2 Division Titles with a lot of the guys drafted then. Sure would be great to keep more guys on the roster longer but the realities of the salary cap make that very difficult.

One real positive is that we're off the coaching carousel for now.

 

[Chopper0080]

I give that draft a solid C as it is an average draft. 4 contributors out of 8 picks. 1 legitimate starter in Wells. 1 potential starter in Toler. 1 special teams starter and 3rd down contributor in LSH. 1 backup in R Johnson.

 

[kerouac9]

I give that draft a solid C as it is an average draft. 4 contributors out of 8 picks. 1 legitimate starter in Wells. 1 potential starter in Toler. 1 special teams starter and 3rd down contributor in LSH. 1 backup in R Johnson.

If you only get one legitimate starter in every draft, then you better extend all of your players when their contracts come up.

The Pittsburgh Steelers can afford to only get Ziggy Hood and Mike Wallace out of the 2009 draft because Wallace is a Pro Bowler and Hood played very well. More importantly, they have a veteran team where a ton of guys are on their second or third contracts.

Green Bay got B.J. Raji and Clay Matthews out of that draft, but also T.J. Lang (15 2011 starts at LG) and Jarious Wynn (4 starts as backup DE in 2011). They're one of the top teams in the NFL now.

Want to know why the Falcons are going to struggle in 2012? Check out their 2009 draft class:

2009 1 1 24 24 Peria Jerry DT Mississippi 4 starts in 2011
2 2 23 55 William Moore DB Missouri 11 2011 starts
3 3 26 90 Christopher Owens DB San Jose State 1 2011 start
4 4 25 125 Lawrence Sidbury Jr. DE Richmond 0 2011 starts
5 5 2 138 William Middleton DB Furman Didn't make 2011 roster
6 5 20 156 Garrett Reynolds T North Carolina 7 2011 starts at RG
7 6 3 176 Spencer Adkins LB Miami (FL) 1 2011 start
8 7 1 210 Vance Walker DT Georgia Tech 0 2011 starts

When the over/unders come out in a couple of months, take the "under" on the Atlanta Falcons.

 

[Arizona's Finest]

I love Beanie and am one of his staunchest defenders on this board, but you can't give his draft choice an A- because you like him.

Case against Beanie as an A- selection:
- 16 starts in 3 NFL seasons
- Was unable to clearly unseat Tim Hightower for the starting job in 2 years
- Cards felt compelled to draft Ryan Williams toward the top of the second round to compete with Wells
- Still needs to develop his pass blocking technique and choices

I'm fine with giving Beanie a "B", but you can't be an "exceptional" player when you can't beat Tim Hightower out of a job in 2 years.

I'd add against Rashad Johnson that if you're a third-round pick and you're
not starting heading into your third year, you're a screw-up. The Cards have been trying to brush Johnson under the rug since minicamps when they realized that Nick Saban had sold them a complete bill of goods. At best that
selection deserves a D+.

Johnson was so awful we needed to use a 2nd round pick to trade for Kerry Rhodes because he was so awful his rookie season in practice and limited game exposure.

Disagree with your sentiment on Beanie. He is definitely A- or B+ IMO. First off we drafted him at what 31? That was extremely good value there. He's our starter, has the Cardinals rushing record in terms of single game, and definitely had his best year last year in terms of playing hurt and carrying the running game by himself. He should have an even better year this year too. If you look at players picked by every team the last 5 drafts at 30-32 the production from Beanie in relation is very high.

But I mean really these "grades" are stupid and subjective and arbitrary so it's only minor quibblng. I take exception that we didnt do well at that pick however.

This is a great write up and the biggest thing I take away is that we can assume 2 of the 3 OL drafted this year won't do much. All the bitching about Grimm is justified based on what he got out of Canfield and Johnson.

 

[kerouac9]

Disagree with your sentiment on Beanie. He is definitely A- or B+ IMO. First off we drafted him at what 31? That was extremely good value there. He's our starter, has the Cardinals rushing record in terms of single game, and definitely had his best year last year in terms of playing hurt and carrying the running game by himself. He should have an even better year this year too. If you look at players picked by every team the last 5 drafts at 30-32 the production from Beanie in relation is very high.

But I mean really these "grades" are stupid and subjective and arbitrary so it's only minor quibblng. I take exception that we didnt do well at that pick however.

This is a great write up and the biggest thing I take away is that we can assume 2 of the 3 OL drafted this year won't do much. All the bitching about Grimm is justified based on what he got out of Canfield and Johnson.

Because Beanie had one above-average season in three years, and only after he was handed the starting job due to injury, he deserves an A grade?

Yes, Beanie's 2011 was impressive. It was the season that I'd hoped he'd have the opportunity to present since he was drafted. But it's only 1/3 of his career production. If Beanie repeats that success in 2012 (a feat that despite my love for Beanie's game I don't think he gets the opportunity for) and the Cards reward him with a second contract, then maybe revise the grade upward.

But after what he's shown so far? Just slightly above average. You have to get more than 16 starts in three years out of your first-round pick, no matter which selection he was chosen with.

 

[NJCardFan]

Ryan Williams was drafted the following year

For the record, Ryan Williams was drafted in 2011 not 2010. That said, all in all, Whiz's drafts have been eccentric st best. Let's take a look:

2007-Levi Brown is the only one left of this draft but he is hardly considered a diamond here. He's so bad that he was released from his contract and re-signed at a much cheaper rate.

2008-Calais Campbell is turning into a stud and Doucet has been serviceable...as long as he stays on his feet. However, the others are gone including our 1st pick in DRC.

2009-Jury is still out on Beanie and Toler but the rest are forgettable.

2010-Oddly enough, this one is turning out to be a good draft. Dan Williams is progressing(but needs more seasoning), Darryl Washington is turning into a stud, O'Brien Schofield is a serviceable player, Andre Roberts has shown flashes, and for a 7th round pick, Dray has been an OK TE and, of course, there's Skelton not to mention the UDA Max Hall who's play in pre-season sent Leinart packing.

2011-Of course it's still early but PP is a stud returner and showed flashes as a DB and Sam Acho is looking like a steal and even David Carter and Demarco Sampson made contributions last year. This is showing me that Whiz has grown quite a bit in his drafting style.

 

[InfiniteRed]

I think you'd have to give LaRod an A+. Any 7th round pick that makes an impact is pretty good since it's hard to find talent that late. He has made many plays as a running back, more as a kick returner and even more as a gunner. A+ man.

Oh by the way the Eagles RB is called LeSean McCoy.

 

[john h]

That's a real indication of how fast the rosters turn over in the NFL. The Cardinals media guides used to mark players still on the roster in red in their draft history section. Every year the previous two years drafts would be almost all red. Then it would drop to maybe half in year 3 and only 1 or 2 in year 4.

It's not any different now. We only have 3 players still on the roster from the 2005-2008 drafts. 3 out of 26 selections. 2005 and 2006 would be all black. Only 6 total from all drafts prior to 2009.

Can we say they were all poor drafts? I don't think so when we won 2 Division Titles with a lot of the guys drafted then. Sure would be great to keep more guys on the roster longer but the realities of the salary cap make that very difficult.

One real positive is that we're off the coaching carousel for now.

I think a major problem for the Cardinals has been not being able to keep good players they have drafted. They end up leaving in free agency, let go only to become a starter for some other team, traded or what ever. Right now we are apparently going to tag Campbell when we should reach some sort of contract extension with him. Let us try to keep our good guys to form a team that has cohesion.

 

[cardpa]

For a draft to get an A rating, it must have three starters in it, three years out. I only see one starter in Wells (who may get beat out this year), and possibly a second in Toler. LSH keeps this draft from being a sold D in my book.

I'll rate it a C-.

Go Cards!!!

Agree completely Capital. If you don't have three starters 3 years out there is no way you can give this draft a A. Four of these guys are gone. As someone else said LSH plays a limited role in the offense. He is a solid contributor for a 7th round choice.

To me the book on Toler is still out. If he wins a starting job then this grade goes up. If not the a C or C- at best.

 

[A fan who cares]

Thanks for everyone who read my analysis and commented on it. It really sharpens my football 'IQ'.

 

[JCSunsfan]

For the record, Ryan Williams was drafted in 2011 not 2010. That said, all in all, Whiz's drafts have been eccentric st best. Let's take a look:

2007-Levi Brown is the only one left of this draft but he is hardly considered a diamond here. He's so bad that he was released from his contract and re-signed at a much cheaper rate.

2008-Calais Campbell is turning into a stud and Doucet has been serviceable...as long as he stays on his feet. However, the others are gone including our 1st pick in DRC.

2009-Jury is still out on Beanie and Toler but the rest are forgettable.

2010-Oddly enough, this one is turning out to be a good draft. Dan Williams is progressing(but needs more seasoning), Darryl Washington is turning into a stud, O'Brien Schofield is a serviceable player, Andre Roberts has shown flashes, and for a 7th round pick, Dray has been an OK TE and, of course, there's Skelton not to mention the UDA Max Hall who's play in pre-season sent Leinart packing.

2011-Of course it's still early but PP is a stud returner and showed flashes as a DB and Sam Acho is looking like a steal and even David Carter and Demarco Sampson made contributions last year. This is showing me that Whiz has grown quite a bit in his drafting style.

DRC was an excellent draft choice. He cannot be discounted just because he was traded.

 

[Duckjake]

DRC was an excellent draft choice. He cannot be discounted just because he was traded.

It depends on what you are basing your analysis on for a particular draft. If it is just selecting talented players then DRC was a good pick and that is true of most first round picks the Cards have made the last 20 years. If I'm not mistaken every Cardinal first round pick going back to TJones in 2000 was still in the NFL last season except for Wendall Bryant.

If you are basing it on contribution to the Cardinals then he still was a good pick because we got some good production while he was here.

If you are basing it on long term success its debatable with DRC because he's no longer on the team just 4 years after being drafted but he was used to bring in a QB. Tim Hightower would fit in the latter two categories as well.