The Arizona Cardinals have yet to hire their next head coach, but whoever earns the position will likely trade quarterback Kyler Murray. The first overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, Murray started out his career on a promising note and guided the team to the playoffs in 2021. However, he proved to be a mid-tier quarterback who is good enough to start in the NFL, but not good enough to justify franchise quarterback money.
Murray is not on Hall of Fame trajectory by any stretch of the imagination, but that doesn’t mean he won’t fetch a decent return on the open market. With a lackluster group of quarterbacks declaring for the NFL Draft and top prospects like Dante Moore returning to college, ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss reports that teams could give up a decent haul for Kyler Murray.
REPORT: Kyler Murray’s Trade Value Increasing Ahead of Free Agency, NFL Draft
Nobody is confusing Kyler Murray with a top-10 quarterback, but there aren’t enough starting-caliber passers to go around. While he probably won’t net a first-round pick, the Cardinals can probably get a decent pick for Murray’s services and move forward with a new option under center.
It’s impossible to say who the Cardinals will sign until they land a head coach, but there’s a decent chance they go after a veteran like Tua Tagovailoa or Geno Smith. Arizona currently holds the third-overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft and is behind two quarterback-needy teams in the Las Vegas Raiders and the New York Jets. Seeing as they don’t have a path to a young quarterback, they might as well bring in the best available veteran.
Unlike Murray, Tagovailoa and Smith probably won’t generate much interest on the trade market. Their respective teams will probably release those quarterbacks, and Arizona can sign either one as an adequate short-term option.
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