NFL Draft 2012: 5 Big Names the Arizona Cardinals Must Avoid in First Round

The Arizona Cardinals have the No. 13 pick in the 2012 NFL Draft. Instead of telling you who they should take with that pick, today we will focus on who they should not take.

There are a handful of reasons why certain players shouldn’t be picked by certain teams, ranging from team needs to character issues to the player himself being overrated and not worth the risk.

You will see all three of those in this set of slides, so join us as we highlight some of the biggest names in the draft that Arizona must avoid with their first pick on April 26th.

Michael Brockers, Defensive Tackle, LSU

Reason: Team Need/Overrated

The past two draft classes for Arizona have included defensive tackles Dan Williams (2010—Round 1, pick 26) and David Carter (2011—Round 6, pick 184).

There is no room on the depth chart for Brockers, who is overrated to begin with.

A large man, he takes up a lot of space in the middle of the line. He also seems to become lost on the field at times, and LSU’s game in 2011 against Georgia is proof of that.

Brockers was routinely knocked backwards and was overwhelmed by even a single offensive lineman.

Bulldogs right guard Chris Burnette manhandled Brockers play after play, knocking him completely out of the play many times. He seemed disinterested in causing pressure and appeared to give up on one occasion.

That lack of focus can mean the difference between a win and a loss in the NFL (it did not make any difference in this game, as LSU routed Georgia), and that fact is a big turnoff for this pick—let alone that the Cardinals don’t need him.

David DeCastro, Guard, Stanford

Reason: Team Need

It isn’t that he won’t be a good pro. He will be a great one.

Contrary to what most say about Arizona’s offensive line as a whole, the interior of the unit played very well in 2011. From guard to guard, the crew surrendered just eight sacks on the season. (ProFootballFocus.com.)

That was good enough for No. 7 in the NFC and tops in the NFC West—ahead of even division-winning San Francisco (12), who are said to possess the best offensive line in the division and one of the best in the entire league.

If the Cardinals are to take an offensive lineman with the No. 13 pick, it would be a tackle, not a guard.

DeCastro should be a perennial Pro Bowler and an All-Pro candidate every season, but there is no real need on Arizona’s interior line for him.

Vontaze Burfict, Inside Linebacker, Arizona State

Reason: Character Issues

Some flaws can be overlooked if the player is good enough to overcome them on the field. However, Burfict’s flaw consumes him at the wrong time during games.

He is too emotional.

Though he is talented enough to be a Top 10 pick, he will fall because of it. His after-the-whistle shenanigans are not a good fit for the disciplined scheme that defensive coordinator Ray Horton has implemented.

He hurts his team more than helps them, despite showing great open-field tackling ability and the mentality that he will crush anything with a football in its hands.

Unfortunately, there is no room on the much-improved Cardinals defense for one of the best defensive players in the draft, simply because he cannot focus after an opponent gets under his skin.

Janoris Jenkins, Cornerback, North Alabama

Reason: Character Issues/Overrated

Once the most talented member of the most talented secondary in the nation at Florida, Jenkins was relieved of his scholarship and booted from the team shortly after new head coach Will Muschamp took over.

Jenkins' performance at the Senior Bowl in which he was thoroughly outmatched may have caused his stock to drop further.

His multiple arrests are worrisome: He was arrested three times from June 2009 to April 2011—twice for marijuana.

Though Arizona needs depth at the corner position, they will pass on any player with a sketchy past, regardless of team need or potential.

Just ask the Cincinnati Bengals how well overlooking past problems works out in drafting players or signing free agents.

While the Cardinals have seen seven of their players arrested a total of nine times since 2000, Cincinnati has had nine since April of 2009 and a San Diego" target="_blank">league-leading 37 since 2000. (What’s more disturbing is that at least one Bengals player from every position has been arrested in that time, save for the punter.)

Back to the point, there is no way a player with the past Jenkins drags with him comes anywhere close to University of Phoenix Stadium.

Unless, of course, he is a member of the visiting team.

Dre Kirkpatrick, CB, Alabama

Reason: Character issues

Another corner in the 2012 draft class arrested on a marijuana charge, Kirkpatrick was busted more recently than Jenkins was—just one week after Alabama’s National Championship victory over rival LSU.

Although there have been no other off-the-field problems reported, one has to wonder if this is the first time Kirkpatrick has broken the law or just the first time he’s been caught breaking the law.

That thought will be enough to scare away a few would-be takers on draft day, and Arizona will be one of them. Despite his good size (6’2” and 190 lbs) and fluid hips, he will be passed over at No. 13.