This past week, the Arizona Cardinals coaching staff had several difficult decisions to make in regards to the final 53-man roster. Then, scouring the waiver wire, followed by crafting this year’s practice squad.
The new head coach, Mike LaFleur, had his own agenda as far as players he was looking for.
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There were a few surprises among the final roster and a few expected cuts among the almost 40 guys who have since left the desert.
Where did
the athletes released end up?
QB Kedon Slovis – Green Bay Packers
Slovis had a pretty good camp and subsequent preseason. The issue is that most NFL clubs only keep three quarterbacks, and he was the odd man out. And once rookie Carson Beck balled out in the Hall of Fame Game, Slovis’ days were numbered.
When Packers head coach Matt LaFleur saw Slovis in action during their joint practices, he was impressed and added the young signalcaller to their practice squad. Slovis may have an opportunity to be brought up to the main roster because the franchise only kept two quarterbacks: Jordan Love and Tyrod Taylor. The good news for the Cardinals coaching staff is that if any of the three QBs they retained become injured, they are able to claim Slovis at any time as long as he remains on Green Bay’s practice squad.
LB Owen Pappoe – Tennessee Titans
Pappoe was impressive in training camp and had a few excellent games during the exhibition phase. He had four tackles with two batted passes against the Packers, led the team in tackles against the Cowboys with 10, three in the Raiders contest, and a single tackle in the Hall of Fame Game. The Cardinals had a logjam at linebacker, plus the rookie Karson Sharar and journeyman Eku Leona outplayed Pappoe. He is the only former Cardinal who ended up on the main roster of another club.
CB Sean Murphy-Bunting – Tampa Bay Buccaneers
This was a guy who restructured his deal to stay in Tempe, then was released. He didn’t impress in camp or in preseason games against the opponent’s second-string offense, so he ended up on the unemployment line. The Bucs signed him to their practice squad. The Cardinals had spent a valuable second-round draft pick back in 2019. He was productive early in his career with three picks his rookie year and 70 tackles in Year 2.
But they cut bait with him after his rookie contract expired, and he hasn’t been the same player since he re-signed in 2024. He did not play at all last year, which hurt his status for this season unless he balled out during camp. Plus, CB Garrett Williams’ return gave the defensive backfield plenty of talent as it was.
Practice squad
OT Valentin Senn is Arizona’s international designation on the practice squad and was in the Cardinals’ camp this year. He was born and raised in Austria.
Of the 17 players listed on the initial practice squad, 13 were in the Cardinals’ camp this year. The only ones who were in another camp were:
TE Jared Harrison-Hunte (Panthers)
OG Vershon Lee (Vikings)
CB D’Shawn Jamison (Steelers)
TE Shawn Bowman (Jaguars)
