Opposing defensive coordinator doubts Carson Beck will 'be special' in the NFL with Arizona Cardinals

Carson Beck might already be up against it in the NFL. The Arizona Cardinals’ rookie was selected in the second round of the 2026 NFL Draft out of Miami, but don’t expect him to be special.

That’s from an anonymous Power Four defensive coordinator who went against him. Beck played the majority of his college football at Georgia before helping lead Miami to the CFP national championship game last season.

He’s put up some good numbers, but has also made some head-scratching throws. And that’s, apparently, exactly what you’re going to get from Beck.

He’s been in enough good places. I think what you see is what you get,” a Power 4 defensive coordinator said, via ESPN. “I think he’ll be solid. I don’t think he’ll be special. Whether it’s poise or accuracy at key moments, he just seems to have too many misses. But he’s a good, solid player.”

The epitome of Beck might be what he did last season to lead Miami to the national championship game. While he played really well, he also had games such as the one against Louisville, where he threw four interceptions, and a game-ending interception against Indiana in the title game. Still, he threw for nearly 4,000 yards and 30 touchdowns.

Beck finished the season with 3,813 passing yards, 30 touchdowns, 12 interceptions, and a 72.4% completion percentage. He was named to the All-ACC Third Team and named Offensive MVP of the Fiesta Bowl/College Football Playoff semifinal game against Ole Miss.

“It benefits anyone at any position to be able to sit back,” new head coach Mike LaFleur said. “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.”

If Beck does sit back, he’ll sit behind Jacoby Brissett and potentially Gardner Minshew. The Cardinals drafted Notre Dame RB Jeremiyah Love with the No. 3 overall pick, so they’re clearly trying to set up a corps for the future. Beck might be the man under center at some point, though.

“We spent a lot of time with Carson, met him at the Combine, brought him in for a 30 visit, there was no shortage of tape on Carson,” GM Monti Ossenfort said. “Carson played in a lot of big-game environments. Played in a lot of intense environments in the SEC … and then the highest stage he could play on in the National Championship Game.”