Cardinals select Miami DB Jaden Davis with Pat Tillman honorary pick No. 226 of 2024 NFL Draft
In a fitting move, Arizona addressed the defensive backfield with a special pick in the seventh round of the 2024 NFL Draft.
With the No. 226 overall pick, the Cardinals selected Miami defensive back Jaden Davis.
The 226th selection carries a profound significance in Arizona. This was the exact pick that the Cards used in 1998 to draft former defensive back Pat Tillman.
Tillman notably quit football in 2002 to join the U.S. Army, a decision he made eight months after the Sept. 11 attacks.
On April 22, 2004, in Spera, Afghanistan, Tillman, 27, and Afghan militiaman Sayed Farhad, were killed in action due to American friendly fire.
On Saturday, in commemoration of the 20th anniversary of Tillman’s death, Jeremy Glasstetter and Deborah Trimble, two members of the Pat Tillman Foundation and veterans of the Army and Air Force respectively, announced the 226th selection of Davis from Detroit.
The Cardinals final selection of the 2024 Draft will come at selection 226, the same spot at which they turned in this card to take Pat Tillman in 1998.
The announcement will be made by Tillman Scholars & military veterans Deborah Trimble (Air Force) & Jeremy Glasstetter (Army) pic.twitter.com/q5byodwh8O
— Mark Dalton (@CardsMarkD) April 27, 2024
Tillman, an Arizona State linebacker who was selected in the seventh round, played four NFL seasons for the Cardinals, shifting to defensive back.
Davis, a cornerback weighing 185 pounds and standing 5-foot-10, hails from Miami. He had an impressive collegiate career, playing 52 games, making 110 tackles, defending 14 passes, and intercepting once. He spent his initial four years with the Oklahoma Sooners but ended his career as a redshirt senior with the Hurricanes. In 2023, he concluded his career on a high note by achieving his first career sack and his first two forced fumbles.
Davis joins fellow secondary players Max Melton, Elijah Jones and Dadrion Taylor-Demerson in Arizona’s 2024 draft class as the Cardinals look to revamp a passing defense that allowed the league’s 30th-most touchdowns through the air last year. In the case of Davis, he’ll likely look to make his mark on special teams with a chance to later crack the lineup in a rotational role.
It's an honor to be picked at 226th. pic.twitter.com/K6DX5FfyIG
— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) April 27, 2024
