EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsThe Arizona Cardinals joined the running back revolution Thursday night.Arizona selected former Notre Dame star Jeremiyah Love with the third pick in the NFL draft, making him the highest-drafted running back since Saquon Barkley went No. 2 in 2018.Love will join a Cardinals offense that's getting revamped under new head coach Mike LaFleur, who is bringing a West Coast-style scheme to the desert.Love, who ran a 4.36-second 40-yard dash at the NFL scouting combine, will arrive in Arizona as the presumed starter, sharing a backfield with veteran James Conner as well as Trey Benson and Tyler Allgeier, who was signed as a free agent in March.Chatter linking the Cardinals to Love intensified in the past few weeks. Arizona, which is coming off a 3-14 season, has a number of needs on both sides of the ball -- running back not among them -- but Love was widely considered the best player in the entire draft.With Love going third and Ashton Jeanty going sixth last year to the Las Vegas Raiders, it marked the first time since 2017 and 2018 that running backs went in the top 10 in back-to-back drafts. Nearly a decade ago, a running back was taken in the top 10 for three straight years, as Ezekiel Elliott went No. 4 in 2016.Love is coming off a season in which he ran for 1,372 yards and 18 touchdowns, which ranked eighth and third in the country, respectively. He eclipsed 100 yards in six of his 14 games, reaching 228 in Week 8 against USC. He also rushed for 94 yards in two other games.The Cardinals did not have a single 100-yard rushing performance last season.
