Who Will Be the First Pick in the 2019 NFL Draft?

Jawan Taylor, Offensive Tackle, Florida

FanDuel Sportsbook Odds: +5000

If the Cardinals decide to stick with Rosen in 2019, they absolutely have to put a better offensive line in place to protect him. Rosen was sacked 45 times as a rookie, incurring a sack on a ludicrous 10.3% of his dropbacks. Rosen suffered through the 36th-ranked protection rate, according to PlayerProfiler. This is an especially worrying stat when one remembers that there are only 32 NFL teams.

The Cardinals' overall sack rate allowed was 9.5%, the sixth highest in the NFL. While the draft does not seem to have a consensus stud at the left tackle spot, Jawan Taylor could be the answer to the Cardinals' prayers on the right side. The former Florida Gator is far from a finished product, battling his weight as often as opposing pass rushers at times in college, but he has enough in tank to suggest that he could come in straight away and give the Cardinals (and David Johnson) something extra in the run game.

An offensive tackle hasn't been taken with the first overall selection since 2013, when the Kansas City Chiefs took Eric Fisher. This was one of only three occurrences since 1997 when the first name called was a player whose main goal in life was to protect a quarterback, after Jake Long was taken by the Miami Dolphins in 2008 and the St. Louis Rams took Orlando Pace in 1997. Taylor going to the Cardinals is something of a long shot, but tackle is a spot that they will have to look to improve upon eventually.