Rookies are coming to town, and the vets are deep in Phase 2. Mailbag incoming. Don't forget to send a question for a future mailbag with at least a first name and last initial.

From Shane Binzer:

"Absolutely thrilled for Calais Campbell getting a chance to set the all-time games records for a DL, as well as getting a good swing at a ring. Guy is a treasure in this league and I sure hope he goes up in the Ring of Honor some day. And on that point, I've always felt the ROH was less about stats (albeit important) but also about impact on and off the field. Guys who do things the right way and set an example on how to be a pro's pro. Here's hoping CC finds a place both in the ROH and the Hall of Fame."

I don't know how Calais will one day announce his retirement -- or, if as he hinted late in the season, that he might just disappear like Larry Fitzgerald -- but after talking to him late in the year, he didn't sound like a guy who was going to stop playing. He knew he had put enough on tape to show the league he still had something to give. Did I hope it was in Arizona? Yes. But when he showed up last year, the thought was that it was a team ready to contend for a division. That wasn't the case, and understandably, he decided to look at another former home to play. I'll say this: I think he has made a case to be in the Hall of Fame someday. And the Ring of Honor seems like a given.

Of course, he needs to retire before that happens.

From Dale Hatfield:

"I was a Kyler Murray fan, but he's gone now and that's probably best for the Cardinals and him. I am still a Cardinals fan. Regarding the draft, I really like the fact that the Cardinals stood pat and had one pick in every round. And I think every pick they made has the potential to help the team. Some people thought they reached further than they should have to get Carson Beck. I really liked the pick. He may not be the Cardinals quarterback of the future but I think he has a good chance to be just that. My question is do you think the Cardinals will spend significant cap money on defensive help?"

I'm not sure of the time frame to which you refer. Next offseason maybe? But the main moves have been made already for this offseason. There might be a veteran out there perhaps, but no one you are spending "significant" cap money on and no one who you'd sign for more that one season at this point. What the defense needs is for a jump forward from many younger draftees. Robinson. Nolen. Will Johnson. Melton. Ojulari. Those guys -- among others -- have to play better. Karlos Dansby isn't walking through that door. Patrick Peterson isn't walking thought that door.

From Steve V:

"Darren, I was wondering what you thought about a possible scenario where James Conner moves into a coaching role as a RB coach with the Cardinals once his playing days are done?"

I'm not sure I see James as a coach when this is all done. That doesn't mean he couldn't. I think he'd be good at it and command respect from jump. But there are a lot of players who don't want that coaching life, which is much harder time-wise (and less lucrative) than playing. I also don't think he's thought much about post-career yet either. Make no mistake, he wants to be playing.

From John M:

"Being a person who likes to root for the underdogs, I am always interested in the undrafted players the team signs. Maybe because they have to work so much harder to prove themselves. I root for at least one to make the team, even if it is just on the practice squad. This year I have three: WR Harrison Wallace, OLB Cameron Robertson and OL Ka'ena De Cambra (the local boy). Do any of the undrafted rookies stand out to you?"

Appreciate the question John, but frankly, these guys haven't even arrived yet. They still have to pass a physical and sign -- there have been times in the past where an announced UDFA doesn't get signed for one reason or another at the last second -- and then we actually need to see what they look like on the field. I think the safety Wydett Williams Jr. is intriguing because he made some plays at Ole Miss last year but more importantly, with Jalen Thompson's departure there might be room at safety to stick around (especially with Garrett Williams coming off the Achilles.) But it's early early early.

From Matt D:

"When can we expect introductory press conferences for the rest of our draft selections besides Love?"

The rest of the draft picks will have press conferences starting Thursday as rookies arrive first for rookie minicamp and then for offseason work. Carson Beck, Kaleb Proctor and Karson Sharar are on deck to talk on Thursday.

From Jay Schubert:

"Darren, almost every year in the NFL a low draft pick or an undrafted player sneaks up on the league and surprises everyone by claiming a starting job and excelling at that position. I am sure you have seen many examples of this across the league and wondered what low-drafted or undrafted player surprised you the most with their success over their NFL career. Also, can you recall any low-drafted or undrafted Cardinal that might come to mind as well?"

I mean, in Arizona, how do you not immediately think of undrafted-played-in-arena-football-played-in-league-in-Europe-only-started-because-of-Trent-Green-getting-hurt Kurt Warner? The man made the Hall of Fame. The man took a bad Rams team to a Super Bowl title. He took the Cardinals to a Super Bowl. He'll always be the ultimate surprise story to me.

As for the Cardinals, there have been a couple but "I was an 8th-round pick" Tony Jefferson jumps to mind first. TJ is still playing, and still ticked off he didn't get drafted in 2013. The man had a career-high four interceptions last season. (He was out of football all of 2020 and 2023!)

From Martin Davies:

"Hi Darren. When do you think we'll get to hear from James Conner on the arrival of Love and how that affects his role on the team? JC is a leader, and heart-and-soul-type guy on the team, but it is difficult to be that guy if you're not the starter. I'm curious what his mentality is. Secondly, I think for the benefit of Trey Benson he could be traded. Generally what is the time frame for those types of late-round trades to occur?"

I'm not sure if we are going to hear from Conner anytime soon; he is still rehabbing and the Cardinals in recent times have usually shied away from bringing out injured players to talk to the media. To be honest, it isn't as if Conner loves the spotlight anyway; he politely turned down a chance to talk the day after the season in January. So it might be a while. As for Benson's role, you don't rule anything out, but unless there is a team that really feels like they have a hole, trade discussions aren't exactly burning up the phone lines. Usually deals in general might happen mid-to-late training camp. And the Cardinals too don't want to be hasty; you don't know health-wise what that room will look like by early September.

From Dean H:

"Howdy Pun Master Darren! I enjoyed reading last week's mailbag. My questions have to do with the little advantages that division teams (sometimes conference teams) try to gain on one another. The unspoken chess match, may it be!

1. We hired Mike LaFleur from the Rams. Was the Rams' hiring of Kilff Kingsbury as OC the equivalent of them saying, 'You want intel on us? We're going to get intel on you too!'
2. Were you worried about the 49ers picking one spot in front of us in the second round of the draft? It all worked out and they made a shocking pick, but did it cross your mind that the 49ers might try to burn us and take a positional player we needed just because they hate us?
3. Does Green Bay's hiring of Jonathan Gannon give them any advantage the next time they play us? Is Matt LaFleur able to pick the brain of his brother with the help of Gannon knowing Rallis and our defense? Will Gannon have a chip on his shoulder too to try and demolish us?
4. Reading posts after the draft, many Seahawks writers and fans seemed jealous that they were unable to draft Jeremiyah Love to fill the void of Kenneth Walker, even though they had no realistic shot. After drafting Jadarian Price, they are saying, "Our Notre Dame back is in a better system than yours and ours will have a better season!" When the Seahawks and Cardinals play head to head, is there going to be a burning desire from the Seahawks to have Price outperform Love?

Thanks for all you do!"

I think, as a general rule, you are looking at this through a prism that is a little too ... petty? Don't get me wrong, petty exists. But to these levels?

1. Kliff has been gone since 2022. There is no real intel left for him to give. He almost went to work for McVay before taking the USC job/quickly turning to the Cardinals head coaching job. It's always been a place that made sense for him.
2. No team is making a pick just to screw another team. It's a lovely benefit if you wanted that player anyway, but no, that's not a concern. Even in a trade situation, especially in the second round, tough to know what that team behind you even wants to do. (And as a side note, everyone should know by now "worried" is not something I would be. Things happen, I'll react and analyze.)
3. Given that the Cardinals and Packers don't play until 2027, that's kind of far in the future. Who knows what things look like next year? Besides, who makes more sense at giving the Packers an advantage -- Gannon, or the brother of the Cardinals head coach?
4. I mean, yes? But not because of "neener, neener, we have the better Notre Dame back." It'll be because if Price plays better than Love, the Seahawks improve their chances of winning. Just like they want JSN to be better than Michael Wilson or Trey McBride.

From Jackson B:

"Hi Darren, firstly, loving the mailbag all the way from Sydney. Didn't love the Love pick, purely from a surplus value point of view. But will be fun. Given we now have so many running backs, do you think it's likely one is traded? Would this be more likely before or after the season starts?"

You can't rule out a running back trade but as I noted above, when would be TBD. There just won't be much of a market right now for any team now that everyone is around that 90-man limit.

From Rod R:

"In discussing the right tackle position you mentioned Wilkinson, Jones, and Udoh, but not a word about Jayden Williams. Why not?"

With all due respect to Jayden Williams, he is a seventh-round pick. He needs to be able to make the roster before the idea that he would start at right tackle. Could he surprise? Of course. But he will have work to do just to be on the 53.

From Elliot H:

"Hi Darren, looking forward to a better season ahead. I understand the traditional view that selecting a running back early in the first round is not 'great value' but there are a few things that confuse me about the reaction. Last year Travis Hunter was selected second overall due in part to his flexibility. Arvell Reese is selected at fifth despite not having a clear position. Wideouts routinely get selected early in the draft. Love projects to be a dual-threat back who might regularly achieve over 1500 yards running and catching every season. We should give RB more ... Love."

I see what you did there.

The reaction was going to be the reaction. I am OK with those who aren't comfortable with a running back at 3. That's been my philosophy as well, to be honest. But I have also come to believe in the pick at this point given Love's talent and more importantly, the rest of the options at 3, that the Cardinals made the right call. I sought Bailey first, but he was not an option. As always, if Love is good, no one will wonder. If Love struggles, this will always be a talking point.

From Bob Kitsos:

"Thanks for your mailbag work. A fun and informative read. What do you think about having Carson Beck enrolling in former NFL coach Jon Gruden's quarterback clinic at Barstool Sports?"

I'm not sure exactly what you are asking -- whether it's about doing something with Barstool, or Gruden, or just what he looked like in the episode (which I will admit I have yet to watch.) I don't think he really "enrolled" as much as took part in a single episode of the show. But I do think those meet-ups with Gruden help bring out some the personality and thought process of the QBs.

From Quinn Nance:

"Are we going to get the videos of the rookie arriving and getting fitted for their helmets and stuff? I see a still image of Love getting his helmet, but that's been all there is. All the other NFL teams have a bunch of cool behind the scenes videos posted. Granted our guys haven't arrived yet, but I just want to be sure you and your team are planning on capturing all of that."

Since Love has been the only one here no other rookie has been part of that. As far as fittings go, it will depend on the timing. That used to be before rookie minicamp but it might not be -- I'm not sure how much they will do on field this weekend or if there will be a lot of the fittings. But we will do as much behind-the-scenes content as we can.

From Paul Bonvicino:

"What number will Jeremiyah Love by wearing? And when will it be known and available to purchase?"

We should know the rookie numbers by the end of the week. Rookie arrive Thursday to make those choices. It would make sense if Love kept the No. 4 he had in college given that it is available with Greg Dortch's departure, but nothing is official yet.

From Robert Malicki:

"Hello, Darren, Thank you for printing that letter from long-time Big Red fan, Ray Martin. Like him I greatly admired O.J. Anderson, even paying 'Juice' his due credit especially after winning his Super Bowl MVP. My question is about how LaFleur will utilize his prize rookie in the backfield? Love is built like the great Walter Payton who went into battle a bit under 6-foot and around 205 pounds not the 6'2" 225 lbs. of O.J. Love is an elite college RB but has never faced 17-game schedule? I too was at that Busch Stadium home opener against Dallas for O.J.'s debut. It was a performance for the ages. I would anticipate Love being a serious contender for No. 32's records."

Having met and stood next to Love, I think his build will hold up just fine on the field. Whether he challenges Anderson, well, I did say last week I could see it. But I also shouldn't get ahead of myself, nor should anyone. He still hasn't been on the practice field one time.

(That will be soon, though.)