Cardinals Trade Up to Draft Josh Rosen in Historic Move; Twitter Mixed on Pick

The Arizona Cardinals selected UCLA quarterback Josh Rosen with the No. 10 overall pick of the 2018 NFL draft Thursday at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. 

The Cardinals traded up to get Rosen, sending the Nos. 15, 79 and 152 picks to the Oakland Raiders, according to USA Today's Lindsay Jones. Bleacher Report's Ian Kenyon and CBS Sports' Jamey Eisenberg thought the price was more than worth the return for Arizona:

ESPN's Adam Schefter noted the Cardinals have been looking for a quarterback for basically an entire year:

Here's how others reacted to the pick:

Rosen is coming off his best statistical season in three years with the Bruins. He completed 62.6 percent of his throws for 3,756 yards with 26 touchdowns and 10 interceptions across 11 appearances. He added two rushing touchdowns for the third straight campaign.

The 21-year-old California native is up there with USC's Sam Darnold and Oklahoma State's Mason Rudolph in terms of the best pure arm talent in the class. He doesn't have the explosive all-around playmaking ability of Louisville's Lamar Jackson or Oklahoma's Baker Mayfield, but he stands tall in the pocket and can deliver strikes to every level of the field.

Much of the criticism he faced during his time at UCLA was in response to his outspoken style.

In August, he responded to critics' questions about his love for the sport during an interview with Bleacher Report's Matt Hayes.

"I don't love the game? Really?" Rosen said. "If I didn't love the game, I wouldn't be out here getting my ass kicked."

He added: "I don't know why [scouts] say things like that. Because I speak about things other than football? Come on. I want to play 15 years in the NFL. I want to be great. I want my team to be great, to win championships."

In December, he received some push back after providing Josh Weinfuss of ESPN with an honest assessment about what he hoped for during the draft, saying: "I'd rather be a lower pick at the right team than a higher at the wrong team."

Some saw that as a slight toward the cellar-dwelling teams picking near the top.

Meanwhile, an unnamed NFL executive told NFL Media's Lance Zierlein that "you don't have to dig around for too long to find people who said he was hard to coach."

The Cardinals decided to look past those reported character concerns, which could well be debunked in the coming years, to grab one of the class' best players. His on-field ability gives him a chance to serve as a franchise quarterback for a long time.

Rosen is set to compete with Sam Bradford for the starting job during his first year in Arizona. While the franchise may choose the conservative route by letting the veteran open the year under center, his extensive injury history suggests the UCLA standout will get his chance sooner than later.