The biggest question hanging over new Arizona Cardinals coach Mike LaFleur's early tenure is how they'll handle Kyler Murray's assumed departure.
Speaking on Wednesday, LaFleur was asked about Murray's future, but the coach provided no path to an answer.
"Just like everything else on the roster, open conversations in this building," LaFleur said, via the team’s official website. "No timeframe on that."
March 15 -- the fifth day of the NFL's new league year -- provides some semblance of a timeframe for the Cardinals. That date is when $19.5 million of the QB's 2027 salary becomes guaranteed. Assuming he's not in their long-term plans, the club will have to cut or trade the QB before that happens. Murray's contract is set to count for roughly $52.7 million against the salary cap in 2026. The team would get relief with a trade or could split the dead money over two years by making him a post-June 1 release.
NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport previously reported that Arizona is likely to move on from Murray.
The former No. 1 overall pick was usurped by Jacoby Brissett last season following an early-season foot injury. The Cards never brought Murray off IR, eventually shutting him down for good in December.
The looming question is whether the Cards can find a trade partner or will simply be forced to release the QB. A trade, even for a mid-to-late rounder, would at least offer Arizona some minor return on its investment. However, to date, there has been little interest in a club taking on that contract, particularly for a player they know is destined to be a free agent. The more likely scenario is that Arizona is forced to cut Kyler, and he pulls a Russell Wilson -- playing on a league-minimum prove-it contract and hits the open market again in 2027.
At that low price, Murray would have significantly more value to a team searching for a veteran option (Dolphins, Jets, Vikings, etc.).
LaFleur might have no timeframe for the decision, but the path to moving on is fairly clear. Barring a turn in the trade market, the Cards will wind up releasing the veteran in the coming weeks before that 2027 salary guarantee kicks in.
