Carson Beck was drafted 52 picks after Ty Simpson, but he should find a much quicker path to the field.
The Cardinals opened the third round of the NFL draft (pick No. 65) by selecting Beck, who should get immediate practice snaps if starting quarterback Jacoby Brissett continues to skip voluntary workouts during a contract dispute.
Once considered a potential No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, the 6-foot-4, 235-pound Beck, 24, rebounded from a disappointing 12-interception season at Georgia in 2024 by transferring and leading Miami to the national championship game.
He played his best during the College Football Playoff, finishing the season with career highs of a 72.4 percent completion rate and 30 touchdown passes.
“He looks the part,” Arizona head coach Mike LaFleur said. “That doesn’t mean that’s the end-all, be-all. One of the coolest things about him, spending some time with him, he’s been through those big games but he’s been through some adversity. I think he’s gotten better from it.”
For his part, LaFleur’s relaxed demeanor resonated with Beck.
It’s not just Beck who is entering a potentially favorable situation for playing time. Penn State’s Drew Allar, who became the fourth quarterback chosen when he was selected by the Steelers, also enters a depth chart with a question mark at the top because incumbent starter Aaron Rodgers remains a free agent considering retirement.
Meanwhile, Simpson was the surprise No. 13 pick of the first round by the Rams, so he is getting a much bigger contract than Beck and Allar. Simpson had been connected to the Cardinals in a possible scenario where they traded up from No. 34 into the late first round to secure a fifth-year contract option.
But LaFleur was outdone by his old bosses: Rams general manager Les Snead and head coach Sean McVay, even though Simpson could sit on the Rams bench for multiple years behind 2025 MVP Matthew Stafford.
There was buzz around the league that Beck could come off the board early Friday but no quarterbacks were picked in the second round. He still beat LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier and Allar — who were grouped together with Beck in the conversation to be the No. 3 quarterback by many league sources — to the punch.
“For me, I haven’t even stepped in the facility yet,” Beck said. “Look, my approach to this entire thing is being myself, being the best player I can possibly be, and try to take advantage of every single opportunity I am given.”
Beck joins a depth chart with Brissett, who is seeking a raise from his $4.8 million base salary to more in line with starter money, and journeyman backup Gardner Minshew. The Cardinals ate $54.7 million in dead salary-cap space and moved on from former franchise quarterback Kyler Murray, who is now with the Vikings.
“Experience matters and obviously having a ton of experience in college and having played a ton of games, you see how experience continues to teach you and continues to better you,” Beck said.
After 25-year-old rookie Tyler Shough’s strong season with the Saints, teams were less reluctant than in the past to pick older quarterbacks.
Beck will bring a franchise quarterback aura with him. He dated internet celebrity Hanna Cavinder — a former Miami basketball star, whose twin sister, Haley, is engaged to Cowboys tight end Jake Ferguson.
The Cardinals met with Beck at the NFL combine and used one of their 30 prospect visits to bring him to Arizona.
“We spent a lot of time with Carson,” Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort said. “There is no shortage of tape to evaluate on Carson. Carson played in a lot of big-game environments, a lot of intense environments. A lot of things sold us on Carson.”
Ossenfort said that he did not feel pressure that he had to leave the draft with a new quarterback of the future.
Meanwhile, Allar’s selection by the Steelers was greeted with a big reaction from the crowd in Pittsburgh, which is not short on Steelers and Penn State fans.
There is no telling where Allar might have been selected had he entered the 2025 draft — after a better season — or had he not suffered a torn ACL to cut short his fall.
The Steelers drafted Will Howard in the sixth round last April.
