The Cardinals are not planning to keep Jacoby Brissett at quarterback after Kyler Murray returns from injury.
Murray has missed Arizona’s last three games with a foot injury. The offense has looked better with Brissett under center, averaging five more points per game in his starts compared to Murray’s. Brissett has three straight games with at least 260 passing yards and two touchdowns; Murray has none.
That has led to questions about the Cardinals sticking with Brissett after Murray comes back, but head coach Jonathan Gannon shut such talk down on Monday night.
“Nothing’s changed on that,” Gannon said (via ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss) when asked about making a change at quarterback.
However, the Cardinals have not found much success under Gannon and general manager Monti Ossenfort since they were hired together in 2023. They did not draft Murray or sign him to his current contract extension, and could be looking to find a different long-term quarterback that meshes better with their vision for the team.
It would still seem to be unwise for the Cardinals to bench Murray this year. Such a move could be an alarming sign to other teams and drop his trade value in the offseason, and he has enough guaranteed money remaining on his deal to make an outright release uncomfortable for Arizona’s salary cap.
It is also fair to wonder if Murray has been put in the best position to succeed. His results were much better with Kliff Kingsbury calling the offense rather than current OC Tommy Rees, and the Cardinals have not consistently had a strong offensive line since drafting Murray. The Cardinals seem to be approaching a major decision point regarding Murray’s future, but they seem unlikely to bench him before making that call.
OC is Drew Petzing
But … but, Aikman/Buck feels it should be Brissett … who can at least see over the linemen.
Might as well trade Murray to the Jets Steelers Saints or Browns
Brissett has looked better in the offense and wouldn’t hurt to get out from under Murrays contract
None of those teams would or should have any interest in Murray.
Jets definitely would.
Now the wouldn’t. The Jets are acquiring draft picks so they can get a QB early in round 1 and have him on his rookie contract. They don’t want Murray’s contract.
Why would the Jets have any interest in an undersized QB with a big contract, an injury history, and no significant wins who might be losing his starting job to Jacoby Brissett? Literally no team in the NFL should be interested in Kyler Murray considering his contract. If he was a free agent, there would be teams interested. But not with that contract and at the cost of draft capital.
is it too late to pursue a baseball career ?
Even when Murray gets healthy, the Cardinals should continue to start Brissett until he stumbles. He will. Brissett hasn’t managed to maintain a high level of play for long periods.
Plus, more Brissett games gives more time for Murray to get to a real 100% and not go back in at 75-80% readiness with a tender foot, ready for reinjury.
Can’t see Murray getting traded by the Deadline, one reason being his contract and what it still has on it from the extension he signed. I say better chance this off season before the 26 draft in April. I can see Murray going to Miami, Cleveland, Jets, or Saints. After today’s trade, the Jets will have the picks to move for another new QB for next season. The Cardinals could go for a QB for 2026, don’t really see Brissett as the long-term answer for them.