Cardinals Offense has Underated Depth
The Arizona Cardinals’ depth chart is full of question marks entering the offseason, but the talent is there.
The Cardinals have not informed quarterback Jacoby Brissett that he will be their starting quarterback in 2026, but all signs point to him being the guy. Brissett is still under contract. He is scheduled to earn $4.88 million in base salary this season. Minshew signed a one-year deal worth $5.75 million this week. Neither contract screams starter. Neither screams backup, either.
Arizona is leaving itself room.
The team’s quarterback situation became wide open this offseason when the Cardinals officially released former No. 1 overall pick Kyler Murray on March 11. Murray, taken first overall in 2019, played just five games in 2025 before a foot injury ended his season. He landed on injured reserve in early November and never returned. The Cardinals moved on. Murray has since signed with the Minnesota Vikings.
The backfield is also not set in stone.
The Cardinals lost both of their top running backs to season-ending injuries in 2025. James Conner suffered a foot injury in Week 3 and required surgery, ending his season after just three games. Trey Benson stepped into the starting role but lasted only one more week. He suffered a knee injury in Week 4, underwent arthroscopic surgery on his meniscus, and did not return. The Cardinals finished the year with a patchwork backfield of journeymen. The room needed a reset.
Running back Tyler Allgeier left Atlanta and is heading to the desert, signing a two-year, $12.25 million contract with the Arizona Cardinals in free agency. Allgeier, 25, spent his entire four-year NFL career with the Falcons before hitting the open market. Arizona wasted no time making him a priority signing under new head coach Mike LaFleur.
Arizona restructured Conner’s contract to keep him for 2026. Benson remains on the roster. Now Allgeier joins them. LaFleur is expected to run a committee-based offense, and the Cardinals now have the bodies to do it. ESPN’s current depth chart lists Allgeier first, followed by Benson, Conner, Corey Kiner, and Bam Knight.
Allgeier’s case for leading that group is straightforward. He has been one of the most durable backs in the league. He has missed exactly one game in four NFL seasons. He has never fumbled. He logged all 17 games for Atlanta in 2025 and posted a career-high eight touchdowns despite sharing the backfield with one of the most electric running backs in football.
That last point is the crux of the fantasy argument. Bijan Robinson absorbed the bulk of Atlanta’s rushing volume every season after his arrival in 2023. Allgeier’s yardage dropped from 1,035 in his rookie year to 683, then 644, then 514. But the touchdowns held. He scored eight in 2025, one more than Robinson. He was a red-zone fixture even in a reduced role.
What Are The Odds?
Despite questions at a few key positions on this roster, the talent is there. Trey McBride is arguably the best tight end in the league, while the WR group is equally as strong. The Cards added Kendrick Bourne this offseason and have 2025 breakouts, Michael Wilson. Marvin Harrison Jr. isn’t coming off his best season, but he is only 23 years old. The first 4th overall pick in the 2024 draft has been getting a lot of heat, but he still has time to prove his worth.
Despite all this, the Cardinals are currently +3000 to win the NFC West. Those odds are an insanely good bet, despite the division’s competition. The Seahawks, Rams, and 49ers are all in peak form, but at 300 to 1 and the parodies of the NFL, I feel it’s worth the long-shot wager.
NFL Draft
First-year head coach Mike LaFleur did not make a flashy run at the open market. He didn’t need to. The additions of running back Tyler Allgeier and offensive guard Isaac Seumalo addressed two real needs without overspending. Allgeier brings a physical, reliable rushing option to a backfield that lost both its starters to injury last season. Seumalo, a Pro Bowl selection in 2024, steps in immediately as one of the better interior linemen in the league at a value price. Arizona also added multiple offensive linemen with starting experience at guard and tackle through depth signings. The right side of the line still needs a legitimate answer, but the foundation is more stable than it was.
What comes next belongs to the draft.
Arizona holds the No. 3 overall pick on April 23 in Pittsburgh. The Raiders pick first. The Jets are at No. 2. Both teams carry significant quarterback needs, which means the top of the board could break quickly. The Cardinals have their own quarterback question, but reports suggest the organization would prefer to use that third pick on a premium pass rusher.
The names at the top of that position group are real ones. Texas Tech’s David Bailey and Miami’s Rueben Bain Jr. are both legitimate top-five talents. Ohio State’s Arvell Reese offers a hybrid profile that could fit Arizona’s scheme. If the Jets take one of those rushers at No. 2, the Cardinals may still have their top choice waiting.
There is also Francis Mauigoa at right tackle. Arizona has talked about adding a top-tier tackle option, and Mauigoa has appeared in multiple mock drafts at No. 3. The Cardinals did add tackle depth in free agency, but none of those signings represent the kind of long-term answer the right side of the line needs. Mauigoa remains a live option.
Before any of that gets sorted out, though, there’s a problem Arizona has to deal with right now. Josh Sweat has reportedly requested a trade. Sweat finished 2025 with 12 sacks, a career high, and was the team’s only credible pass rusher. Trading him would create a void that no draft pick could immediately fill. The Cardinals have resisted moving him so far, and the math makes that easy to understand. No one else on the roster came close to his production. Baron Browning, Zaven Collins, and Jordan Burch combined for 4.5 sacks last season. That group needs reinforcement, whether Sweat stays or goes.
If Sweat is still on the roster come draft night, Arizona likely addresses another position at No. 3 and leans on the second or third round to find his running mate. If Sweat forces his way out, the equation changes entirely, and a top pass rusher becomes the only call at No. 3.
Either way, the outside linebacker room is the Cardinals’ most urgent business between now and April 23.
LaFleur is building a run-first, balanced offense. The pieces are starting to fall into place on that side of the ball. The defense, specifically the edge, is where the offseason still has real work left to do.