The elephant in the room has calmly walked out. The Arizona Cardinals announced that they plan on an outright release of quarterback Kyler Murray, unless a trade is finalized before then, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.
The release is something Murray’s camp has wanted, which will allow him to find his own new team and work out a deal to play somewhere else, either as the starter or as an experienced backup.
RELATED: KYLER MURRAY’S TRADE VALUE IS SMALL
The move by the franchise will save significant
guaranteed funds, including $36.8 million in 2026 alone. It also cancels out the $19.7 million the club would have been obligated for in the 2027 season.
Murray was with Arizona for seven years. It is still a possibility that another NFL team could offer a trade at the last minute, now that the Cardinals have come out and stated that their plans are a release. An 11th-hour trade would guarantee that Murray would become a roster member of the new club instead of having to deal with the athlete as a free agent and be able to sign with any team at any time.
Arizona was facing a massive $47.5 million dead cap hit with a post-June 1 designation. By letting him go on March 11, the franchise will bank some of its losses instead.
The Cardinals fanbase was dumbfounded when they signed Murray to that massive five-year, $230.5 million deal back in 2022, with $160 million being guaranteed. That season, he ended up on IR with a non-contact knee injury when he tore his ACL on Monday Night Football. The following year, he began on the PUP list with a new head coach, Jonathan Gannon. Last year it was another injury that finished his season as he was limited to just five starts in 2025 due to a mid-foot sprain he sustained in Week 5.
For his career, Murray had 87 starts and missed 26 games, threw 2,941 attempts with 1,974 completions for 20,460 yards, a 67.1% completion percentage, a 7.0 completion average, 121 touchdowns against 60 interceptions, and a 91.6 QB rating. He rushed for 3,193 yards on 532 attempts with an additional 32 TDs. Murray was sacked 195 times, had 51 fumbles, and lost just 12.
Murray’s win-loss record was 38-48-1. He started one playoff game and lost (2021).
As an NFL rookie, he was named to the NFL All-Rookie Team and was named “NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.” He has gone to two Pro Bowls (202, 2021).
As far as granting him his outright release instead of trading him, just last week the analysts at ESPN were stating that they thought the Cardinals had a 5% chance of trading him, mainly because of his mammoth contract.
What should Arizona expect in a trade Murray? ESPN’s Booger McFarland said the franchise should not be expecting a whole lot:
“Realistically, I don’t think anybody’s going to trade for Kyler Murray. He’s gotten to a point right now where when you look at him as a 5’-10”-maybe quarterback who struggled throwing from the pocket. Yeah, he’s athletic, but he’s been hurt. I just think the market for him to go to another team is going to be small.”
Despite his impending release, Murray should have a strong market. Several teams already come to mind, including the Cleveland Browns, Atlanta Falcons, Pittsburgh Steelers, Miami Dolphins, New York Jets, and the Minnesota Vikings.
Murray, age 28, was the first overall pick of the 2018 NFL draft out of Oklahoma, with whom he won the Heisman Trophy in 2018.
Currently in the Cardinals QB room are Jacoby Brissett (6’-4”, 235 pounds) and Kedon Slovis (6’-2”, 223 pounds). Brissett is 33-years old and has played in 101 NFL games in 10 seasons. Arizona is his sixth NFL club. Last season, Brissett went 1-11-0. Slovis was a rookie last year out of BYU and appeared in two games, throwing two passes.
The majority of NFL clubs bring in four quarterbacks to training camp, with one usually a young veteran for competition.
With the move from Murray, this means that GM Monti Ossenfort will either sign a veteran to become the backup in free agency, or draft a rookie in April’s NFL draft by at least Round 3, such as Ty Simpson of Alabama early in the second round, or LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier in the third round.
