2 best trades the Cardinals must make before the 2024 NFL Trade Deadline

Here are two potential moves the Arizona Cardinals should consider making.

After turning in one of the more exciting wins of the 2024 NFL season in Week 2 against the Los Angeles Rams, the Arizona Cardinals have fallen back to earth in a major way, going 1-3 on the way to a 2-4 record while struggling to score more than 14 points in three of their last four games.

Could the Cardinals reload their roster at the trade deadline, adding a top-tier talent in the hopes of squeaking out a few more wins before the end of the season? Maybe yes, maybe no, but could they ever put up enough wins to challenge for the NFC West, let alone a spot in the Wild Card race?

Unfortunately, that just doesn't seem like it's in the cards.

But hey, that's okay. Why? Well, because in this new league, where there are 14 teams that make the playoffs instead of 12, seven from each conference, there are fewer sellers midway through the season, which could give the Cardinals plenty of opportunities to cash out on veteran players in the last year of their contracts in order to give more snaps to young players now and secure draft capital in 2025, including a pair of defensive players who might be more valuable to another team than the Cardinals.

1. Trade Kyzir White to the Dallas Cowboys for a sixth-round pick

While it's always exciting to make moves and acquire premier talent at the trade deadline, the Cardinals are not a team about to make major waves in the playoffs and fight for a Super Bowl but instead a squad heading once again for a top-10 draft pick.

While that may be disappointing to long-time fans who want to see success return to the desert, it's encouraging for folks with a more long-term view of the team-building process, as it should provide plenty of bites at the apple to build something special around Kyler Murray heading into the future.

As a result, the Cardinals should be willing to move off of older players or players on short-term deals in order to not only secure future assets but give additional snaps to young guys.

On paper, who perfectly fits that bill? Kyzir White, the rangy inside linebacker who followed Jonathan Gannon to Arizona after a solid run with the Eagles. A 28-year-old college safety playing out the final year of a two-year, $10 million contract, White is an affordable, effective linebacker who can play off-ball linebacker in a 4-3 or 3-4 scheme. While he hasn't played particularly well in 2024, as has been the case for most of the Cardinals' defense, he was an effective player in 2023 and looked more like a long-term building block and a short-term trade addition.

Fortunately, for a team like the Dallas Cowboys, who have struggled at linebacker in 2024 under new defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer, White's versatility and price should be just right to help replace their recent losses, including Leighton Vander Esch's retirement and Eric Kendricks to a calf and shoulder injury. Considering White's experience playing in the NFC East and his versatility to play multiple linebacker positions in the Cowboys' defense, Jerry Jones should be willing to give up a Day 3 pick to bring him to town and allow more snaps for Krys Barnes moving forward.

2. Trade Dennis Gardeck to the Eagles for a conditional fifth-round pick

Much in the same vein of trading away White, the Cardinals should also consider moving on from one of the hearts and souls of the Gannon era, especially as he, too, is in the middle of a down year minus one game.

A dynamic personality on and off the field with one of the best nicknames in the business, “The Barbarian,” Gardeck looks like one of the premier pass rushers in the NFC. But when you consider all three of his sacks and his forced fumble came in one game against a Los Angeles Rams team that had a makeshift offensive line that was down multiple scores by the end of the first quarter, his stat line doesn't tell the full story.

Other than that game, Gardeck hasn't really gotten much going on as a rusher, recording 15 tackles, five tackles for loss, and a pick over 159 defensive snaps.

When targeted as a coverage player, which has only happened three times, Gardeck has allowed two catches for 16 yards, good for an 8.0 yards-per-completion average that's actually higher than his 2023 marks, when he allowed ten completions on 13 targets for 72 yards and two touchdowns.

At 6-foot, 232 pounds, Gardeck really isn't schematically versatile,  as he likely can't play defensive end for a standard 4-3 team, but for a team like the Eagles? Who really need to get more pressure from their front seven under new defensive coordinator Vic Fangio? The idea of adding “The Barbarian” makes some sense, as he could fill a role similar to Andrew Van Ginkel in Miami last year and produce as a more traditional outside linebacker. If the Cardinals can get a mid-round pick for Gardeck, call it a fifth that becomes a four if the Eagles make it to the NFC Championship game, it might just be worth saying goodbye to the fan favorite.

Bonus: trading for Haason Reddick should be on the table

While the Cardinals shouldn't be trading for win-now players in 2024, if the right player comes along, they shouldn't turn it down either, especially if the player in question is someone like Haason Reddick, who had his best professional season under Gannon in Philadelphia.

Now, Reddick has reportedly hired Drew Rosehaus to help end his holdout with the Jets, but what if the deal doesn't come through? What if Reddick still doesn't want to play for the Jets, and they are willing to move him for a meager return to be done with the situation? Well, in that case, maybe the Cardinals should pull a Chandler Jones, albeit at a much lower price, in order to bring him to town. Reddick could prove he can still play under Gannon, work well with his teammates, and ultimately sign a new long-term deal with Arizona in order in a way New York wasn't interested in.