The Arizona Cardinals could look to add to their defensive line.
The Arizona Cardinals are excited about the potential of first-round pick Walter Nolen III moving into the future, and he just might have a former teammate joining him in the desert. The Cardinals, according to Tony Pauline, have met with Ole Miss DL Zxavian Harris ahead of the 2026 NFL Draft: "Defensive tackle Zxavian Harris did not work out, as he’s just a week removed from foot surgery.
Harris was flagged at the combine for a condition on the bottom of his foot and was disallowed from working out," Pauline"The decision was made to have surgery and repair the issue so he would be ready for camp in July. Harris is expected to return to Indianapolis for the combine medical recheck in a few weeks. "He met with the Minnesota Vikings on Wednesday, as the team traveled to Oxford, hoping to work out the defensive lineman, unaware of his condition. Harris also met with the Arizona Cardinals." The Cardinals, much like every team in the league, could always use reinforcements along the defensive side of the ball. Harris' draft stock isn't quite pinpointed at this point in time, though he could potentially be a Round 3/4 pick."Harris is a disruptive, alignment-versatile interior defender with mismatch traits and untapped potential. Though he lacks the contact balance/hand usage to cleanly control block engagements, he consistently recovers and often reemerges to help finish the play. He often overwhelms single blocks and disrupts run schemes from a gap away. He wasn't asked to two-gap at Ole Miss very often, but has the tools for the task. He’s a pocket-pushing rusher, but with better hand work he should see a boost in pressure production. While Harris can play 3-,4- and 5-techniques, his best NFL fit might be nose tackle." That certainly sounds enticing, especially if Nolen can continue on his trajectory and the Cardinals could squeeze something out of fellow defensive lineman Darius Robinson. Arizona has picks in all seven rounds entering the 2026 draft, all of them ranking near the top — none of their selections are lower than the fourth-highest in each round. They'll certainly have their pick of talent on each day. While the Cardinals are expected to address edge rusher early in the draft, the defensive line could ultimately see another upgrade with the versatile Harris as a realistic option.DONNIE DRUIN Donnie Druin is the Publisher for Arizona Cardinals and Phoenix Suns On SI. Donnie moved to Arizona in 2012 and has been with the company since 2018. In college he won "Best Sports Column" in the state of Arizona for his section and has previously provided coverage for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Arizona State Sun Devils. Follow Donnie on Twitter @DonnieDruin for more news, updates, analysis and more!
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