If the draft had been held in Las Vegas as was planned, Arizona Cardinals General Manager Bruce Keim might have rushed the podium to announce the selection of Clemson’s Isaiah Simmons.
Keim, head coach Kliff Kingsbury, and owner Bill Bidwill were almost giddy in their comments after the Cardinals selected Simmons with the No. 8 overall pick in the first round Thursday night.
Simmons was all over the field for Brent Venables last season. He played safety 218 snaps, slot cornerback 286 snaps, outside linebacker 160 snaps, inside linebacker 120 snaps, perimeter cornerback 17 snaps and rushed the passer 71 times, totaling eight sacks (to go with more than 100 tackles and three interceptions, the first college player with such a trio since Khalil Mack).