Cardinals firmly inside Top 10 in ESPN NFL ranking. Why it makes sense
· Yahoo Sports
The Arizona Cardinals have finally caught the national media's attention for the right reasons.
ESPN NFL writer Bill Barnwell ranked the Cardinals at No. 6 on his "Ranking WR, TE, RB groups for 2026: Best and worst NFL teams," which was released on Thursday, June 25. He placed them in the top six after they placed 15th heading into last season and 21st heading into the 2024 season. Barnwell even wrote that "the Cardinals have a legitimate case for No. 1 in these rankings next year."
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Barnwell revealed that he is underwhelmed by 2024 No. 4 overall NFL draft selection Marvin Harrison Jr.
Harrison Jr. has totaled 1,493 receiving yards in his two NFL seasons with 12 receiving touchdowns. He played just 12 games last season. Barnwell did find a silver lining in Harrison Jr.'s unfortunate start to his career, though.
"The good news for the Cardinals is that (Michael) Wilson had a breakout season when Harrison wasn't available," Barnwell said. "Wilson averaged 2.5 yards per route run across 293 routes without Harrison on the field in 2025, identical to what George Pickens and Nico Collins produced over their full seasons."
Wilson posted 1,006 receiving yards in his third NFL season in 2025.
Barnwell also added that 2026 No. 3 overall NFL draft selection Jeremiyah Love might be one of the more fascinating reasons to watch Arizona this season.
A Heisman finalist at Notre Dame in 2025, the running back ran for 2,497 yards and 35 rushing touchdowns in his last two seasons at the NCAA level.
"Between Love, Tyler Allgeier and James Conner, the Cardinals have the deepest backfield in the league," Barnwell said.
A 2026 free agent acquisition for the Cardinals, Allgeier ran for eight rushing touchdowns last season as a backup running back to Tucson Salpointe Catholic alum Bijan Robinson for the Atlanta Falcons. Conner scored two touchdowns before he went down to injury last season in the third game of the year, and came into that season riding back-to-back 1,000+ yard rushing seasons.
Barnwell had to mention Cardinals tight end Trey McBride too, as the 2025 First-Team All-Pro selection is coming off back-to-back 110+ catch seasons with 1,100+ receiving yards each.
"There's a scenario in which Love and Harrison live up to expectations, Wilson is able to sustain the sort of form he showed without Harrison on the field all season and the Cardinals have a legitimate case for No. 1 in these rankings next year," Barnwell wrote.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Cardinals firmly inside Top 10 in ESPN NFL ranking. Why it makes sense