English
EspañolKyler Murray’s time with the Arizona Cardinals appears to be over.
The former No. 1 overall pick in 2019 will reportedly be released by the franchise on the first day of the NFL’s new league year on Wednesday, barring a trade, according to multiple reports.
Arizona owes Murray $36.8 million guaranteed in 2026 and another $19.5 million is set to trigger in March.
The once Rookie of the Year quarterback is coming off an injury-filled campaign that limited him to just five appearances. He threw for 962, seven touchdowns (six passing and one rushing) and three interceptions on 68.3 per cent completion in that span.
Murray has eclipsed 3,000 passing yards and 20 passing touchdowns in four of his seven seasons thus far. The Cardinals only made the playoffs once with Murray under centre, however, and lost in the Wild-Card round (2021) following an 11-6 season.
As for Arizona, Murray’s expected release is the latest in an off-season full of sweeping changes. After the Cardinals finished 2025 with a 3-14 record —their third sub-five-win season in four years — and missed the playoffs for a fourth consecutive season, head coach Jonathan Gannon was fired.
Now, new head coach Mike LaFleur and general manager Monti Ossenfort, who joined the organization in 2022 after Murray had already been drafted, can choose their own successor to the long-time Cardinals QB.
The franchise will pick third in the upcoming 2026 NFL draft in April.
Murray’s tenure in Arizona comes to an end after seven years, and once released, the two-time Pro Bowler is free to sign elsewhere, even for the minimum. The 28-year-old leaves the franchise ranked third in total passing yards (20,460) and passing touchdowns (121) and tied sixth in rushing touchdowns (32).
Murray arrived in Arizona with huge expectations after winning the Heisman Trophy at Oklahoma in 2019, and at times he delivered.
He was the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year, providing multiple electrifying highlights such as the so-called “Hail Murray” in 2020, when he connected with DeAndre Hopkins for a game-winning touchdown against the Buffalo Bills on the final play of the game.
The pinnacle of his Cardinals’ tenure came in 2021, when the team jumped to a 10-2 record by early December. But Arizona would fade down the stretch, losing four of their final five games before getting bounced by the Los Angeles Rams 34-11 in the wild-card round.
–with files from the Associated Press
