The Cardinals aren’t ready to make any Carson Beck declarations just yet.
After selecting the Miami quarterback with the first pick of the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft, Arizona general manager Monti Ossenfort made clear the team is not rushing to define Beck’s role.
“We just announced his name a half hour ago. We just want to get him in the building here and show him where the cafeteria is and the locker room is and get him fitted for his gear,” Ossenfort said Friday.
“And then, we’ll go from there. We’re excited to add great competition in that room, and we’ll see how it shakes out.”
Carson Beck of Miami participates in a drill during the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium on February 28, 2026 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Getty Images Beck, who spent five seasons at Georgia, winning two national championships before transferring to Miami for his sixth and final college football season, joins incumbent Jacoby Brissett and longtime backup Gardner Minshew in the Cardinals’ QB room.
New Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur indicated that the team will simply let the best quarterback take the starting job.
“It benefits anyone at any position to be able to sit back. Sometimes guys don’t have a choice because you have to put your best 22 on the field, so we’ll see where this all shakes out,” LaFleur said.
Beck apparently impressed Cardinals brass after throwing for 30 touchdowns last season for the Hurricanes en route to the national title game, where they lost to No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza and Indiana, 27-21.
Jacoby Brissett of the Arizona Cardinals warms up prior to a game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paycor Stadium on December 28, 2025 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Getty Images “A lot of things sold us on Carson, and we were excited to add him to our room,” Ossenfort said.
“He’s got good arm strength. He can drive the ball down the field. Good accuracy, good production. Those are all things that we like.”
Like his new bosses, Beck wasn’t getting too far ahead of himself after hearing his name called Friday.
“Look, for me, I mean, obviously haven’t even stepped into the facility yet,” Beck said. “My approach to this whole entire thing is being myself, being the best player that I possibly can be and just trying to take advantage of every single opportunity that I’m given.
“But, again, I’m super grateful. I don’t know what that will look like. I’m not sure what’s going to happen in the future, but I know for sure that I’m going to step in there and, again, try to take advantage of every opportunity I can and just put my best foot forward each and every day.”
