Cardinals’ Kyler Murray decision alerts two divisional rivals with $54 million release potentially sparking scramble

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Kyler Murray’s future with the Arizona Cardinals is under severe threat. With Arizona currently 3-6 entering Week 11 and with under fire head coach Jonathan Gannon preferring veteran quarterback Jacoby Brissett over Murray, who is now on IR as he deals with a foot sprain, a change under center could be on the cards next season.Kyler Murray may be forced to find a new home next seasonGettySitting last in the AFC West, 25th in talkSPORT’s power rankings, there is some possibility that the Cardinals could look to trade the 28-year-old quarterback after seven mediocre NFL seasons.Should they choose to do so, ESPN insider Dan Graziano highlighted the Miami Dolphins and the New York Jets as two possible landing spots, with both teams desperately needing a Pro Bowl-caliber franchise quarterback.“Miami comes to mind. The Jets come to mind,” Graziano exclusively told talkSPORT’s Brian T. Smith. “What’s going to happen in the draft is the key. If you end up with the No. 1 pick and you fall in love with a quarterback, you’re probably not in the Kyler Murray market.“But, if you feel like this draft doesn’t offer a top choice quarterback, then maybe that gets interesting… the Jets are going to be looking for a long-term answer. “They also have not just two first-round picks next year, but three in 2027… but somebody will take a shot on Kyler, I’m sure.”Murray is undoubtedly talented and has shown that since his arrival in the league. But this talent hasn’t seen the Cardinals become a winning football team. Both the Jets – who underwent a fire sale at the 2025 trade deadline by trading arguably their biggest defensive stars in Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams – and the Dolphins are perennial losers.New York have failed to reach the post-season since 2010 Mark Sanchez was at the helm, and flopped with Justin Fields as their stop-gap this season, whilst Miami’s Tua Tagovailoa has struggled significantly, and leads the league in interceptions this season (13).A player like Murray could flip the switch for either franchise – despite the star being warned to steer clear of the Jets – but both teams currently lack the offensive weapons to put around any potential new quarterback, whoever that may be.Murray’s contract makes him very difficult to tradeSince being drafted as the No. 1 overall pick out of Oklahoma in the 2019 NFL draft, with Murray under center the Cardinals have reached the playoffs just once.Justin Fields may be a stop-gap for the Jets, but it has been nothing short of a disaster for both parties this seasonGettyTagovailoa has thrown the most INTs in the NFL in 2025 (13)GettyCardinals one of the worst teams in NFL25. Jonathan Gannon is 15-28 coaching the Cardinals and Kyler Murray is going backward.It’s a pretty good bet that Arizona will have a new head coach next season.Check out talkSPORT’s Week 11 power rankings – RIGHT NOW!That came in 2021 after an 11-6 season – their only winning campaign in the last decade – where they ultimately fell to the Los Angeles Rams in the Wild Card round.In his seven seasons in the league, Murray has a 38-48-1 record as a starter, and has completed an average of 67.1 percent of his passes for 20,460 yards and 121 passing touchdowns, as well as rushed for an additional 3,193 yards and 32 scores. He has, however, fired 60 career interceptions. Nevertheless, the Cardinals believed he was their long-term franchise signal caller and penned him to a $230.5 million extension in July 2022 for an average annual value of $46.1 million. But there was one caveat – a puzzling clause in his deal that was classified as ‘independent study’ which required Murray to ‘spend at least four hours a week watching film’ and prohibited him from enjoying TV or playing video games in that time. That particular addendum was removed after public backlash. Murray’s contract makes him difficult to trade, meaning the Cardinals may have to just cut him if they want to part waysGettyWith $160 million in guarantees, his lucrative deal may see him become difficult, although not impossible, to offload should the Cardinals ultimately decide to move in a different direction. “I think he’s going to be tough for the Cardinals to trade,” Graziano told talkSPORT. “He’s got $36.8 million in fully guaranteed money coming next year. And, if he’s on your roster on the fifth day of the league year in March, another $19.5 million in 2027 money becomes fully guaranteed. “I don’t think that there’s a team out there that is going to want to take all that on, which means that the Cardinals, if they want to move on from him – still an if – but if they do, they would probably have to release him and take – I believe – a $54 million dead money hit next year. “That’s tough, but the Denver Broncos took an $80 million hit for Russell Wilson and they’ve made the playoffs and it looks like they’re going to make it again. So, it can be done.”Stay up to date with the latest from the NFL across all platforms – follow our dedicated talkSPORT USA Facebook page and subscribe to our talkSPORT USA YouTube channel for all the news, exclusives, interviews and more.