Cardinals Intend To Release Kyler Murray
Quarterback Kyler Murray‘s time in Arizona is up. Barring a trade, the Cardinals informed Murray they will release him on the first day of the league, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.
The Cardinals have hoped to pull off a Murray trade for at least several weeks, but they have had no luck finding a taker. Not only is Murray on a pricey contract, but he sat out 12 games last season with a mid-foot sprain and did not play past Week 5. It was the second significant injury during Murray’s seven-year career. The former No. 1 pick previously tore his ACL in 2022.
A release is the preferred outcome for Murray, who will have the freedom to choose his second NFL employer once the Cardinals officially cut him. On the other hand, it’s less than ideal for the team. Along with receiving no compensation for Murray, Arizona will take on a mammoth amount of dead money.
If Murray is not designated a post-June 1 release, the Cardinals will absorb a $54.72MM charge and lose over $2MM in cap space in 2026. A post-June 1 release would spread $77.25MM in dead money over two years (including $70.05MM in 2026). The Cardinals would also lose $17.39MM in cap space next season. The only silver lining for Arizona is that it will escape paying Murray a $19.5MM salary for 2027 that would have vested on the fifth day of the upcoming league year.
Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort was not part of the organization when Murray signed a five-year, $230MM extension in July 2022. Steve Keim was at the helm then, at which point Murray’s stock was at an all-time high. The former Oklahoma Heisman Trophy winner took home Offensive Rookie of the Year honors in his NFL debut before earning back-to-back original-ballot Pro Bowl nods from 2020-21.
The Cardinals won 11 games to break a five-year playoff drought in Murray’s third season, but the Rams leveled them in the wild-card round. While Murray’s extension came several months later, he and the organization have fallen off dramatically since then. The descent began before Murray’s Week 14 ACL tear in 2022. The Cardinals had already lost eight of their first 12 games by then. They went on to finish 4-13. Jonathan Gannon replaced Kliff Kingsbury as the Cardinals’ head coach after the season.
With Murray’s recovery dragging into November 2023, the Cardinals were 1-8 when he returned to make his first start in Week 10. Murray spent the last eight weeks of the year shaking off the rust, and the Cardinals logged their second straight four-win season to begin the Gannon era.
Murray and the Cardinals showed some signs of a rebound in 2024. In Murray’s lone 17-game season to date, the 5-foot-10, 207-pounder completed 68.8% of passes for 3,851 yards (7.1 per attempt), 21 touchdowns, 11 interceptions, a 93.5 passer rating and a career-best 63.4 QBR. As a runner, the mobile Murray piled up 572 yards on a lofty 7.3 per carry and scored five more TDs. The Cardinals went 8-9 with a plus-21 point differential.
Any progress the Cardinals may have made two years ago vanished during Murray’s injury-wrecked final season in their uniform. After Murray and backup quarterback Jacoby Brissett combined for a 3-14 mark, Cardinals owner Michael Bidwill retained Ossenfort but fired Gannon. Mike LaFleur is now in place as the Cardinals’ head coach. He will either work with Brissett or a different starter in his first year in charge.
Set to play his age-29 season in August, Murray should draw a decent amount of interest in free agency on a prove-it contract. The Vikings are rumored to have interest in Murray, but they’re just one of several teams in the market for a potential starter.
Vikings Considering Kyler Murray, Geno Smith; Team Interested In Tua Tagovailoa?
We have been hearing for some time that the Vikings plan to add competition for quarterback J.J. McCarthy this offseason. During a recent appearance on the Scoop City podcast, Dianna Russini of The Athletic threw cold water on the notion that a Minnesota-Kirk Cousins reunion could be in the cards, though she did acknowledge that the Vikes could look to add to their QB room (video link).
Russini reiterated Minnesota still wants to develop McCarthy in the hopes that he can live up to his first-round draft status, and ESPN’s Dan Graziano likewise confirms the Vikings are not ready to give up on the Michigan product. Still, the club seems to want to make McCarthy earn the starting job in 2026, and in addition to Cousins, names like Kyler Murray and Anthony Richardson have been floated as possibilities.
There may be mutual interest between the Vikings and Richardson, who would be acquired via trade with the Colts. As ESPN’s Kevin Seifert noted last month, a trade could be the most likely way for Minnesota to add McCarthy competition, because a free agent with options may not want to sign without assurances that they will be given first crack at the QB1 role. Other trade possibilities, per Graziano, include the Eagles’ Tanner McKee and the Texans’ Davis Mills.
Mills was linked to the Vikings in a November report, just like Murray was. Graziano says signs continue to point to a Murray release, which means he will be a free agent in short order (and therefore may not want to hitch his wagon to a team that still has high hopes for its incumbent starter).
Just as Arizona is likely to cut Murray, the Dolphins are expected to release Tua Tagovailoa in the near future, with Graziano confirming the cut will likely be made with a post-June 1 designation. With respect to their possible free agent targets, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler (in the same Graziano piece linked above) reports the Vikings have Murray and the Raiders’ Geno Smith in their first tier of preferred options, with Cousins and Tagovailoa in the second tier.
Smith, though, may not make it to the open market. As our Nikhil Mehta recently suggested, it may behoove the Raiders to retain Smith as a mentor for Fernando Mendoza, whom Las Vegas is all but certain to select with the top pick in this year’s draft. Per Graziano, coaches from multiple QB-needy outfits are anxious to see if the Raiders will release Smith, as they believe the 35-year-old was held back by the Silver-and-Black’s offensive system in 2025. The Raiders may feel the same and could therefore keep Smith in the fold.
If they do choose to part ways, Fowler believes the Vikings make plenty of sense as a landing spot. He adds that many quarterbacks view Minnesota as an attractive destination, likely due to the presence of head coach Kevin O’Connell and wide receiver Justin Jefferson (though again, it is possible that McCarthy and Minnesota’s hopes for him could act as something of a deterrent).
It still seems fair to expect the Vikings to add a QB. Whether they can lure a high-profile player like Murray or Tagovailoa or will need to execute a trade for a passer like Mills or McKee is the question.
QB-Needy Teams Have Options Through Draft, Free Agency
It’s really not a surprise at this point in time, but reports indicate that Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza getting drafted No. 1 overall by the Raiders is all but a sure thing. Mendoza cemented himself as the likely first overall pick even before the Hoosiers’ championship run through the College Football Playoff secured his Heisman win, and as soon as Las Vegas secured the top pick in the draft, Mendoza’s move to Nevada became a near certainty. 
Nothing is ever 100% sure, though, and there is always a possibility that the Raiders look at next year’s wide crop of quarterback prospects and an historic trade offer for the No. 1 overall pick and choose that route.
Overwhelmingly, though, pundits across the media spectrum believe that Vegas will retain their top overall pick and make things official with Mendoza. During an appearance on The Herd with Colin Cowherd, Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer dropped a number of quotes, saying, “I would be stunned if (Mendoza) didn’t go No. 1, right? I think it’s highly unlikely he goes anywhere but Vegas.”
Over at ESPN, a crew of reporters polled several NFL executives on the topic at the Senior Bowl, Shrine Bowl, and Super Bowl, and eight executives believed the Raiders would keep the pick, while no votes were tallied against that possibility. Separately, ESPN’s Rich Cimini asked Jets general manager Darren Mougey about the possibility of reaching out to Vegas to inquire about moving up, and he stated pretty plainly, “I don’t think that’s happening.” Courtney Cronin, another ESPN contributor, added to the crowd yesterday with a piece on Mendoza’s meeting with the Raiders and his excitement at the prospect of potentially being mentored by minority team owner Tom Brady.
Now, for teams with a need at quarterback not located in Sin City, the other obvious solutions are to go after one of the top free agent quarterbacks available — namely, Green Bay’s Malik Willis or Indianapolis’ Daniel Jones — or attempt to trade for San Francisco’s Mac Jones. After impressive 2025 contributions, both Joneses are expected to stay home, though, and only one team will get to claim Willis as a solution, but there is still a solvable equation for the teams that remain.
According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, the teams that are still looking to acquire a passer after the above dust settles will be able to look toward either the litany of veteran quarterbacks with starting experience available for cheap or the numerous rookie passers who may be worth taking a flyer on or some combination of both.
Rapoport points to several veteran former starters who are thought to be release candidates and who may, in the same vein as Russell Wilson, be able to play for the veteran minimum, thanks to the added security of guaranteed money from the teams who may let them go. This situation would apply to players like Kirk Cousins, Kyler Murray, Tua Tagovailoa, Justin Fields, and Geno Smith.
Teams can sign one of these quarterbacks to audition for a Jones-like comeback opportunity then pair them with a young, rookie option that may be available later on in the 2026 NFL Draft. After Mendoza, Alabama’s Ty Simpson has drawn some first-round interest, but there is a perceived drop off in the arms that follow. The next names on the list — LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier, Miami’s Carson Beck, Penn State’s Drew Allar, etc. — could fall anywhere in the draft.
Some see 2026 much like the 2022 NFL Draft, in which Kenny Pickett was the only Day 1 quarterback, and the next passer was taken in the third round. Others believe 2026 could be more like 2018 or 2024, when two passers were widely viewed as first-round talents but several others drifted into the first round based on the number of teams looking for answers at the position.
With many already looking forward to the quarterback prospects of the 2027 NFL Draft, we may see multiple teams opt to employ the services of a veteran starter alone or combined with a promising rookie. These decisions will play out over the next few weeks as the veterans hit free agency after release and draft grades are determined for rookies, but there are several options available to teams looking for quarterback help for 2026.
Cardinals ‘Frustrated’ With Kyler Murray
The Cardinals will explore trades for Kyler Murray this week, but the quarterback’s camp is hoping the team releases him, Ralph Vacchiano of FOX Sports reports. That would be a best-case scenario for the 28-year-old Murray, who would have the ability to pick his next team in free agency.
Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort reportedly has not engaged with Murray since the end of last season. But Murray’s camp will meet with the Cardinals at this week’s Combine in Indianapolis, according to Vacchiano. It does not appear a decision on Murray’s future will be made in Indianapolis, per Vacchiano, but it’s hard to imagine him lasting much longer in Arizona.
Thanks to the five-year, $230.5MM extension former GM Steve Keim gave Murray in 2022, $19.5MM of his 2027 base salary will vest on March 15. A trade or release should occur by then. That’s especially true with the Cardinals having grown “frustrated” with Murray, Vacchiano writes.
Questions regarding the former No. 1 overall pick’s work ethic and leadership continue to hang over him seven years into his career. To make matters worse, the Cardinals are concerned that Murray will never fully bounce back from the torn ACL he suffered in December 2022. Murray’s dual-threat capabilities have been a major part of his appeal, but a source told Vacchiano that his mobility is “shot.” If true, it could put the kibosh on Murray ever turning back into an effective starter.
Arizona’s 2022 season had already gone off the rails before Murray’s knee injury, but he wasn’t far removed from earning original-ballot Pro Bowls nods from 2020-21. The Cardinals clinched their most recent playoff berth in Murray’s second Pro Bowl season. The Rams crushed them in the wild-card round, though, and neither he nor the Cardinals have come back from it.
Arizona lost 13 of Murray’s 19 starts from 2022-23, both 4-13 seasons for the team. There were at least signs of life in 2024. That year, Murray’s lone 17-game season, the 5-foot-10 signal-caller completed 68.8% of passes for 3,851 yards (7.1 per attempt), 21 touchdowns, 11 interceptions, a 93.5 passer rating and a career-best 63.4 QBR. As a runner, he racked up 572 yards on a hearty 7.3 per carry and added five more TDs. The Cardinals went 8-9 with a plus-21 point differential.
Whatever progress the Cardinals thought they had made two seasons ago was erased during a three-win 2025. Murray, who missed 12 games with a Lisfranc injury, didn’t play past Week 5. The Cardinals went on to fire head coach Jonathan Gannon after the season. His replacement, Mike LaFleur, is unlikely to coach Murray in Arizona.
If Murray gets his wish and the Cardinals release him before March 15, they would take on a $54.72MM dead money charge and lose over $2MM in cap space in 2026. That would not be a good outcome for the team, but ripping the Band-Aid off then would be better than designating Murray a post-June 1 cut. In that scenario, the Cardinals would spread $77.25MM in dead money over two years (including $70.05MM in 2026) while losing $17.39MM in space next season.
Latest On Cardinals, QB Kyler Murray
11:40am: The Cardinals will explore trade options for Murray at the Combine this week, per OutKick’s Armando Salguero, who offers the Jets as a potential destination. With a weak quarterback draft class behind projected No. 1 pick Fernando Mendoza, a 29-year-old with three years left of a reasonable-priced contract could draw some interest on the trade market.
9:33am: This year’s round of Combine GM interviews generated an early refrain. This this week represents the GM-speak Super Bowl, and nothing seems to be off the table. Monti Ossenfort joined fellow GMs using this phrase by indicating the Cardinals are keeping their options open with Kyler Murray.
A subsequent report, however, brought an unexpected development. Ossenfort responded in the affirmative to a question about having talked to Murray after his injury-shortened 2025 season. But a source informed ESPN.com’s Josh Weinfuss no communication has taken place between GM and player yet this offseason.
Ossenfort indeed indicated “all options are on the table” at quarterback. No dialogue between Ossenfort and Murray through late February certainly points to the Cardinals moving toward a separation. Previous reports have pegged Arizona as hoping to move on via trade, but assumptions of a release have taken hold thus far.
Murray, 28, missed 12 games last season but has made 87 starts at QB for the Cards; only Jim Hart and Neil Lomax have topped that among passers in franchise history. Murray is Arizona’s longest-tenured QB1 since Lomax’s seven-plus-season run in the 1980s. While a January report did not close the door on the Cardinals running it back with Murray, a new chapter appears on tap.
It would behoove the Cardinals to get rid of Murray by March 15, the day $19.5MM of his 2027 base salary becomes guaranteed. Thanks to a player-friendly extension structure that brought early vesting dates, Murray is already guaranteed $36.8MM for next season. The Cardinals would surely have to pay down some of the eighth-year QB’s contract in a deal, but finding a taker would benefit their salary cap outlook.
Murray is owed nearly $23MM in base salary in 2026. The Cardinals convincing a team to take on part of that would create cap savings — even in a pre-June 1 swap. Were the Cardinals to cut Murray, they would almost definitely need to designate him as a post-June 1 release (when $54.7MM in dead money would be split over two offseasons). Like Russell Wilson in 2024 (or Tua Tagovailoa this year, in all likelihood), Murray would then be cut on Day 1 of the league year. That comes March 13, which would allow the Cardinals to avoid that $19.5MM 2027 guarantee.
The Ossenfort-Mike LaFleur tandem has kept matters close to the vest here, though a report connected the NFC West club to Malik Willis. The Cardinals will have the Dolphins, known Willis suitors after hiring ex-Packer staffers at GM and HC, outflanked in cap space for Willis — whose market appears promising but hazy due to his limited experience — but it is certainly premature to say the former Titans draftee-turned-Packer backup would be a better option than Murray.
While the Raiders are poised to draft Fernando Mendoza at No. 1, the Cardinals could circle back to one of the other options in this top-heavy class. But one season remains on Jacoby Brissett‘s contract, giving Arizona some options in the likely event Murray is done in the desert.
Cardinals Expected To Pursue QB Malik Willis; Latest On Dolphins’ QB Plans
In a year featuring a quarterback draft class that is perceived to be a weak one outside of presumptive No. 1 pick Fernando Mendoza, soon-to-be free agent Malik Willis is becoming a hot commodity. We have already heard that the Browns, Dolphins, and Steelers could be involved in Willis’ market, and Tony Pauline of Essentially Sports hears the Cardinals will be in on Willis as well.
In fact, Pauline’s sources predict Willis ultimately will land in Arizona. The most recent reporting on the Cards’ incumbent QB1, Kyler Murray, indicated the club is undecided as to how it will proceed with the former No. 1 overall pick, who is already guaranteed $36.8MM in compensation for the upcoming season. That said, it would come as no surprise if the Cardinals move on, with a trade the preferred option but a release looking like the more realistic outcome.
Assuming Murray is done in the desert, as Pauline believes, the Cardinals will need to add to their QB room. While Jacoby Brissett played well in relief of Murray last season and could serve as a stopgap solution – he is under contract through 2026 – the 33-year-old journeyman does not profile as a long-term option.
Willis, who will turn 27 in May, could fit that description. The former third-round pick of the Titans has spent the past two years as a backup to Jordan Love in Green Bay, and though his playing time has been limited, he has flashed enough potential to generate notable interest. In his Packers tenure, which includes a 2-1 record as a starter, Willis has completed 70 of 89 passes (78.7%) for 972 yards and six touchdowns without throwing a pick. He has added 42 carries for 261 yards and three TDs.
Like the Cardinals, the Dolphins would prefer to trade their own former first-round signal-caller, Tua Tagovailoa, but are likely to be forced to release him. Pauline confirms that Tagovailoa is not expected to be back with the ‘Fins in 2026, and he says there is an “overwhelming belief” that Miami’s new head coach, Jeff Hafley, wants to bring Willis to South Beach.
Hafley spent the past two seasons as Green Bay’s defensive coordinator, and the Dolphins’ new GM, Jon-Eric Sullivan, was a Packers staffer for 22 years before Miami brought him aboard last month. Their connection to Willis is therefore understandable, though the club’s unenviable salary cap situation could make it difficult for them to compete for his services.
At present, the ‘Fins have just $3.18MM of cap room, and even after more cost-shedding moves, they may not be in a position to win a bidding war. That could point them to a cheaper option like Jimmy Garoppolo.
In that scenario, Garoppolo would not necessarily be handed the QB1 mantle. After all, Bobby Slowik, who was recently promoted from passing game coordinator to offensive coordinator, is said to be a “big fan” of 2025 seventh-rounder Quinn Ewers.
Ewers held his own over the final three games of the ‘25 campaign, his first taste of regular season action in the pros. Pauline’s sources believe the Texas product deserves a chance at a longer audition, particularly since he was seen as a Day 2 prospect who surprisingly fell to the seventh round. If the Dolphins cannot land Willis, Pauline hears the team plans to give Ewers a chance to start while bringing in an inexpensive veteran like Garoppolo to function as the backup.
Cardinals Undecided On QB Kyler Murray’s Future
New Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur is in the process of finalizing his coaching staff. He and the rest of the team’s decision-makers also have to arrive at a decision shortly on Arizona’s approach at the quarterback spot.
Kyler Murray is already guaranteed $36.8MM in compensation for the coming season. He is scheduled to see $19.5MM vest in the form of his 2027 base salary on the fifth day of the new league year, a point which is fast approaching. Clarity on Murray’s status will no doubt emerge before then, but for now the Cardinals are still weighing their options.
“Just like everything else on the roster, open conversations in this building,” LaFleur said when speaking to the media about Murray’s situation (via team reporter Darren Urban). “No timeframe on that.”
Keeping Murray in the fold for 2026 has been mentioned as a possibility, but a parting of ways would not come as a surprise to many. Arizona is expected to pursue a trade of the former No. 1 pick. Of course, the list of suitors willing to take on the remainder of his contract could prove to be rather short. The Cardinals could then decide to cut Murray and allow him to find his next team via free agency.
The most recent reporting on the matter pointed to a release being the likeliest outcome. Cutting Murray with a post-June 1 designation would create over $5MM in cap space but still leave the Cardinals with a massive dead money charge to be split between the next two seasons. With most of his 2026 earnings already accounted for, Murray would represent an attractive option for suitors on the open market. The 28-year-old could be added on a low-cost deal while looking to rebuild his stock in a new setting.
With free agency lacking in clear-cut QB1 candidates and this year’s draft class not held in high regard, Murray could generate a notable market in the event his seven-year Cardinals career were to come to an end shortly. Jacoby Brissett is on the books for next season, but Arizona would be required to add at least one passer this offseason if a Murray departure were to take place. As free agency draws nearer, the Cardinals will remain a team to watch closely.
NFC West Notes: Cardinals, Rams, Gray
Kyler Murray did well to secure a rolling guarantee structure on his five-year, $230.5MM Cardinals extension. The deal provides advanced salary guarantees, and by the quarterback remaining on Arizona’s roster on Day 5 of the 2025 league year, his $22.84MM 2026 base salary locked in. A $13.97MM 2026 option bonus also triggered last year. If Murray remains on Arizona’s roster by Day 5 of the 2026 league year, his $19.5MM 2027 base salary guarantees. That will make trading Murray difficult, as an acquiring team would inherit the 2027 salary guarantee. While Murray is a two-time original-ballot Pro Bowler, he has trended downward in recent years. He coming off a foot injury that limited him to five 2025 games.
Although the Cardinals would like to trade the former No. 1 overall pick, SI.com’s Albert Breer indicated during a recent appearance on Fox Sports’ The Herd a release is the more likely outcome here. GM Monti Ossenfort did not design the Murray contract; predecessor Steve Keim did. The Cardinals could spread the $54.72MM dead money figure over two years by designating the QB as a post-June 1 cut. If the Cardinals cannot find a trade partner, that is the expected scenario. Breer mentions the Jets and Vikings as possible destinations. Minnesota came up as a potential suitor late last year.
A Russell Wilson-like scenario in which Murray plays for the veteran minimum following a release will be in play, and he would be a natural stopgap option as a free agent — while the acquiring team would hold exclusive negotiating rights with the 28-year-old passer until March 2027. Here is the latest from the NFC West:
- With the Raiders and Seahawks hiring offensive coordinators, the Rams are the only team left without one. The Cardinals hiring Mike LaFleur as HC seemingly opens the door to the Rams promoting pass-game coordinator Nate Scheelhaase, but Breer mentions QBs coach Dave Ragone as an option not to be dismissed. Ragone, 46, served as a three-year non-play-calling Falcons OC from 2021-23 and has spent the past two seasons on Sean McVay‘s staff, overseeing Matthew Stafford‘s first two original-ballot Pro Bowl seasons. McVay pointed to an internal hire recently, and it appears he joins Scheelhaase as internal candidates.
- Former DC Jerry Gray is joining the 49ers as defensive backs coach, CBS Sports’ Matt Zenitz tweets. Formerly the Titans’ DC (2011-13), Gray has settled back on the position coaching tier over the past decade. He spent the past three years in Atlanta working under Arthur Smith and Raheem Morris. With the latter becoming the 49ers’ DC, Gray had a natural path to San Francisco. The former NFL cornerback spent the previous three seasons in Green Bay and the six before that on Mike Zimmer‘s Vikings staff as DBs coach. Gray has been an NFL assistant since 1997.
- The Rams are hiring Robert Wright as a defensive assistant, according to ESPN.com’s Pete Thamel. Wright is a former DC at Syracuse and Buffalo, serving in that role with the Orange over the past two seasons.
- More notably on the coaching front, the Cardinals have their new wide receivers and cornerbacks coaches lined up. Four-year Vikings assistant wideouts coach Tony Sorrentino will be the new Arizona WRs coach, ESPN’s Peter Schrager tweets. Sorrentino joins Brian Angelichio — the new Steelers OC — in defecting from Kevin O’Connell‘s offensive staff for a promotion elsewhere. The Vikings gig was Sorrentino’s first NFL job. Zac Etheridge is leaving his role as the Miami Hurricanes’ defensive pass-game coordinator to become the Cardinals’ CBs coach, CBS Sports’ Matt Zenitz adds. Etheridge spent one season at Miami, coaching DBs at Houston (2024) and Auburn (2021-23) before that.
- The Cardinals, however, will lose a member of their scouting staff to the college ranks. Stephen Wise is leaving Arizona to join Georgia Tech’s front office, Zenitz notes. Wise had been with the Cardinals since 2021, working as a low-level scouting staffer.
Cardinals Will Look To Trade Kyler Murray
The possibility of the Cardinals retaining quarterback Kyler Murray for 2026 came up three weeks ago, but his future in the desert remains iffy at best. The team is “likely to move on” from the 28-year-old, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.
Arizona is hoping to find a trade partner for Murray, per Adam Schefter of ESPN. He’ll “absolutely” be on the trade market, Jason La Canfora of SportsBoom hears.
The Cardinals haven’t changed their stance on Murray despite their recent head coaching change, one general manager told La Canfora.
“He’s still gone,” said the GM, who’s seeking a QB but doesn’t have interest in Murray.
Arizona fired the defensive-minded Jonathan Gannon and replaced him with Mike LaFleur, previously the Rams’ offensive coordinator. The Cardinals seem more likely to keep Jacoby Brissett after he started most of 2025 in place of an injured Murray.
“We hear they are going with (Jacoby) Brissett and want to get Kyler out of there,” a top personnel executive informed La Canfora.
It would behoove the Cardinals to get rid of Murray by March 15, the day $19.5 million of his 2027 base salary becomes guaranteed. He’s already guaranteed $36.8MM for next season. The Cardinals would surely have to pay down some of Murray’s contract in a deal, but finding a taker would benefit their salary cap outlook.
Trading Murray before June 1 would save the team $34.74MM and lead to a $17.92MM dead cap hit in 2026. A post-June 1 swap wouldn’t be as helpful, but the Cardinals would still free up $24.94MM while spreading $34.72MM in dead money over two years ($27.72MM in ’26, $7.2MM in ’27).
Releasing Murray would point to a far worse cap situation for Arizona. If done before March 15, the club would absorb a $54.72MM dead money charge and lose over $2MM in cap space in 2026. Cutting him between March 15 and June 1 would create an untenable $77.25MM in dead money and take away $24.59MM in cap room. The post-June 1 option wouldn’t be much better. The Cardinals would spread the $77.25MM over two years (including $70.05MM next season) while losing $17.39MM in space in 2026.
Although cutting Murray would be a worst-case scenario for the Cardinals, it would be a positive development for teams in need of a starting signal-caller. On a minimum salary, Murray would be an “incredibly attractive” option around the league, Rapoport says.
Now coming off his seventh NFL campaign, Murray’s stock has sharply declined since he signed a five-year, $230.5MM extension in July 2022. At that point, the former Heisman Trophy winner and No. 1 overall pick wasn’t far removed from earning Offensive Rookie of the Year honors in 2019. He went on to pick up Pro Bowl nods in each of the next two seasons.
In 2021, still Murray’s best season, the dual threat helped the Cardinals to 11 wins and a playoff berth. The Cardinals, who took a brutal 34-11 loss to the Rams in the wild-card round, haven’t returned to the playoffs or even finished above .500 in any season since. They’ve axed two head coaches (Gannon and Kliff Kingsbury, who had some success with Murray) during their four-year postseason drought.
Murray’s career began trending downward in 2022, the first season after he landed his mega-deal. He struggled over the first two-plus months before suffering a season-ending torn ACL in Week 14. Murray’s recovery kept him out until the following November, limiting him to eight games.
To his credit, Murray rebounded to a noticeable degree in 2024. During his lone 17-game season to date, he completed 68.8% of passes for 3,851 yards (7.1 per attempt), 21 touchdowns, 11 interceptions, a 93.5 passer rating and a personal-high 63.4 QBR. As a runner, he scampered for 572 yards on a robust 7.3 per carry and found the end zone five more times.
In the wake of Murray’s bounce-back season, the arrow was finally pointing up for him and the Cardinals 12 months ago. With improved play from a healthy Murray, the Cardinals went 8-9 and recorded a plus-21 point differential. It was an encouraging step forward for a club that combined for a grisly 8-26 mark and a minus-234 point differential from 2022-23.
Neither Murray nor the Cardinals were able to build on last year’s progress in 2025. They finished an awful 3-14, and Murray missed 12 games with a foot injury. Murray’s time in Arizona may now be on the verge of ending, but even he’s unsure how things will play out, Josh Weinfuss of ESPN reports.
In the seemingly improbable event Murray stays put (which ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler contends is still on the table), Brissett would emerge as a trade candidate, Fowler relays.
On a manageable $4.88 base salary in 2o26, Brissett could be of interest to several teams looking for either a stopgap starter or a capable backup. The Falcons and Jets are among the clubs that could pursue Brissett, per Fowler.
As Fowler points out, Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski and Jets offensive coordinator Frank Reich are familiar with Brissett. He played for Stefanski in Cleveland in 2022 and under Reich (then the Colts’ HC) from 2018-20.
Cardinals Could Retain QB Kyler Murray In 2026
A recent report suggested the Cardinals are likely to move on from quarterback Kyler Murray this offseason. As ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler notes, however, Arizona could retain Murray for at least one more year.
Now 29, Murray has not been able to recapture the form that led to consecutive original-ballot Pro Bowls in 2020 and 2021. That early success convinced the Cards to authorize a five-year, $230.5MM contract for the first overall pick of the 2019 draft, but the Murray/Kliff Kingsbury partnership veered off course soon after.
Murray did not play particularly well in 2022, and an ACL tear suffered in December of that year forced him to miss the last few games of the campaign as well as the first half of the 2023 slate. By that point, Kingsbury had been replaced by Jonathan Gannon (with Drew Petzing coming aboard as offensive coordinator), but Murray’s performance was no better than it had been the year prior.
The 2018 Heisman Trophy winner had something of a resurgence in 2024. He ranked ninth in the league in QBR, and the Cardinals finished with an 8-9 record that suggested a playoff berth could be within reach in 2025. That did not materialize, and Murray’s season came to a premature end due to a Week 5 foot injury.
His recent medical history and middling results over the past four seasons have put his future with the Cardinals in doubt. Although multiple NFL executives have opined that Murray is far better than any other player projected to be available in the free agent and trade markets this offseason, his contract situation – he is due $36.8MM in guarantees in 2026 – means Arizona likely would have to eat a considerable amount of salary to facilitate a trade (even then, it is unclear how much of a market would form).
Even a post-June 1 release would come with a dead money charge of nearly $50MM, and several sources have told Fowler that Cardinals owner Michael Bidwill may not want to pay both Murray and Gannon – who was fired on Black Monday – a great deal of money to work elsewhere next season. If Gannon lands a new defensive coordinator or head coach job to offset what he is still due from Arizona, that could change Bidwill’s thinking.
Still, whomever the Cardinals tap as their next head coach may need to be comfortable with the possibility that Murray will be on the roster next year. If that person is as bullish on Murray as some of the above-referenced executives, the signal-caller’s presence could even be a selling point. After all, the 2026 class of collegiate quarterbacks was dealt a major blow when Oregon’s Dante Moore announced he will not be turning pro this year, and with the Raiders seemingly likely to nab Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza with the No. 1 choice, the Cardinals (No. 3 overall) may not be in position to upgrade the position via the draft.
The club also has Jacoby Brissett under contract at a palatable $4.88MM salary in 2026. The well-traveled signal-caller actually ran the offense more effectively than Murray in ‘25, and despite his 1-11 record, his surface-level stats (94.1 QB rating, 23 TDs, eight interceptions) are appealing. He was also mentioned as a possible trade candidate, though he could also remain as a bridge option for the Cardinals if they move on from Murray.
Naturally, the 33-year-old would like to remain a QB1. When asked if he wanted another shot as a starter, Brissett replied with a simple “hell yeah” (via ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss).