We all know that last year, during training camp for the Arizona Cardinals, Jacoby Brissett was brought in as an experienced QB to back up starter Kyler Murray. That was the plan. If Murray became injured, there would be experience and knowledge behind him.
At the time of the signing, Brissett (6’-4”, 235 pounds) had nine years in the league and had played in 87 NFL games with 53 starts.
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However, he was considered a career backup. He did start two seasons while
with the Indianapolis Colts back in 2019 and 2020. And he started the first 11 games of the 2022 season for the Cleveland Browns while their new quarterback, Deshaun Watson, was serving a league suspension.
But on the remaining contracts with the five NFL clubs he was a roster member of, he was the team’s backup option. Even in 2024, when he was named the starter for the New England Patriots in Week 1, after just five starts, he was replaced by rookie Drake Maye.
So, when he signed that two-year deal for $12.5 million during the 2025 free agency period, he was penciled in as Murray’s backup with Clayton Tune set as QB3. No drama, no quarterback competition, no worries.
Except Murray became injured in the Tennessee Titans loss and was placed on IR. His practice window came up, and the team just kept him there as the offense had come alive with Brissett at the helm despite not winning games. Then Murray was released after Jonathan Gannon was fired and Mike LaFleur became the head coach, and a decision was made. Whether it was LaFleur or GM Monti Ossenfort who officially pulled the trigger to let Murray seek employment elsewhere, what remained was that Brissett was in line to become the starter for 2026.
And after he was told he was the starter going forward, he wanted more money than an NFL starting QB should be getting, and not backup funds. And he got a pay bump for $15.5 million with incentives that could raise it to $21 million.
Which, in NFL circles, is less than half the price that most league starters are getting. Of course, Brissett will turn 34 years old this season. He has been in the league 10 years and has had few opportunities to be considered any team’s starting quarterback.
Brissett joined guys like Colt McCoy, Marcus Mariota, Blake Bortles, Case Keenum, Josh Dobbs, Kenny Pickett, Gardner Minshew, and Josh Johnson, who were all considered career backups.
But now Brissett has his shiny new deal and is listed on the Cardinals’ first official depth chart as this year’s starting quarterback.
Getting back to work
With Brissett’s new contract signed, he started showing up for what he was being paid to be: Arizona’s leader on offense.
He was set to make $1.5 million as the starting QB for one of 32 NFL clubs. He then showed up to work out in the Cardinals’ first training camp practice. Now, for the hard part. By hiring LaFleur, this meant installing a brand-new offense similar to what the Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers, and Green Bay Packers operate under.
Brissett suddenly needed to learn the Cardinals’ playbook cover to cover. Not that he had not even cracked it open yet. But he missed out on all of the class meetings and practice sessions, which are extensions of the playbook.
LaFleur took his time with Brissett. He penciled him in at the back of the line with practice reps, basically labeling him QB4. After a few practices, he finally got his first-team reps on a Sunday with LaFleur calling all the plays. The scheme is new, as is the system, so there was plenty to learn, mistakes to learn from, and finally become comfortable with.
Brissett told ESPN Arizona:
“Obviously, after this night of sleep that I do get, I’ll go back to three hours of sleep for work purposes now. So, I’m not naive to understand that it’s still a lot of work to be done.”
Getting up to speed on a newly installed offense isn’t as simple as changing out the battery in your vehicle. It’s like installing a new starter. In some vehicles, it is easy to get to with comfortable access. Whereas in others, things need to be removed just to get to the starter’s bolts. Most of the Europeans vehicles, you can barely get a hand in a crevice to reach it. Some are buried deep inside the engine valley under the intake manifold. The Audi S4 houses the starter unit directly through or inside the engine mount assembly.
The point is, each NFL offense is different. But Brissett has been forced to catch on with many offenses with the five teams he has been hired by, with six different offenses since he was with the Patriots twice. This is just another offense to learn.
Brissett explained:
“I think that’s what gave me even more confidence in myself is knowing that I’ve been through so many different phases of this thing of football that I knew once the business got handled. Now, the football is the football. I know I’ll take care of that. And I had no doubt that I’m going to put the work in.”
Which comes at the right time. Veteran Minshew and the rookie Carson Beck have been at every OTA and minicamp. They have attended each class session. Both have been practicing and receiving tutelage this entire time. And each showed flashes that they could run this team come Week 1.
Beck has been seen early to late at the practice facility since being selected in the third round of April’s NFL draft. So, he and Minshew have a leg up on learning this new offense.
Brissett understood that without actually participating in team activities, he was getting behind:
“I think that’s the reason why we did get a deal done because they knew I would get the work done, and I think my teammates understood that. And obviously Coach LaFleur doesn’t know me as well, but somebody told him that I’ll do the work.”
And while Minshew is perfectly capable of running an offense, it is Beck who is getting the most attention. Especially since he balled out during the Hall of Fame Game. Yes, Beck played with the second-string against the Carolina Panthers’ second-team defense. We get that and can easily place these facts in perspective.
A lot of new working parts
Playing well and having talent are one thing. What Beck showed in the team’s first exhibition game was that he understood this new offense. He might not have everything down pat, but by golly, he certainly displayed that he was fully grasping what LaFleur is teaching and wanting from his quarterback.
After all, this year’s new offense has proven to be a winning system. The Rams, 49ers, and Packers were all playoff clubs last year. With basically this same offense. What these teams execute on that side of the ball is what Arizona will now be doing.
And the Cardinals have the offensive weapons while simultaneously attempting to revamp the offensive line. All they need is a capable quarterback. Is that Brissett? He admitted that during his time off from the team activities, he hadn’t been completely through the playbook but had an overall idea of the general base. He didn’t state that he filled his days playing the latest version of “Call of Duty,” but that he will start to digest the wrinkles of the scheme as each page of the playbook is turned.
Brissett added:
“I got a long way to go. I mean, I’m willing to put the work in. But it’s training camp. We’re all learning. It’s the first time in this offense.”
A lot of new stuff going on with this Cardinals offense with new faces that have to get used to. Both of his starting running backs in Tyler Allgeier and Jeremiyah Love, two new guards with rookie Chase Bisontis and Isaac Seumalo, a new right tackle between either Elijah Wilkinson or Josh Fryar, and several receivers: Kendrick Bourne, Jalen Brooks, and the rookie Reggie Virgil.
It’s not remembering each new teammate’s name; it is working as one cohesive unit with just a few short months to accomplish this. In a new system. With a new play caller.
Is Brissett up for that?
“That’s the ultimate reward in this game: your respect from your teammates. I kind of pride myself on and really that’s the only thing I really value. Contracts come and go, but your teammates and the people that you go to work with and the ones that want to go to bat for you. I think that’s what matters the most.”
