Are the Cardinals openly tanking? QB Kyler Murray's status, Caleb Williams possibility explored

With the new season only two weeks away, the Arizona Cardinals have kept quarterback Kyler Murray on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list. This means that the quarterback will miss at least the first four games of the season while he recovers from his injury.

Murray, who suffered an ACL injury in last season's week 14's clash against the New England Patriots is expected to miss more than four games. It's likely that he might not even play a single snap for the Cardinals this year.

The franchise has brought in a new head coach in the form of Jonathan Gannon, who previously was the defensive coordinator for the Philadelphia Eagles.

While Gannon has the utmost faith in Murray's abilities, many believe the franchise is tanking to get a top draft pick next year, and possibly draft Caleb Williams. Earlier in the offseason, the Cardinals released star receiver DeAndre Hopkins, and recently traded away Isaiah Simmons to the New York Giants.

Today, they've released quarterback Colt McCoy, who many thought will start for them this season. A couple of days ago, they traded for Joshua Dobbs from the Cleveland Browns, in exchange for a 2025 fifth-round pick.

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The Cardinals could part ways with Kyler Murray

Kyler Murray: NFC Wild Card Playoffs - Arizona Cardinals v Los Angeles Rams

The Cardinals do not have a good squad, and it's quite possible that they finish with the worst record in the NFL. They also have the Houston Texans' first-round pick next year, and it will put them in place to get two very good players who can alter the franchise.

As a result of it, it won't be a surprise if they end up parting ways with Kyler Murray. Last year, the 26-year-old quarterback signed a massive five-year $230.5 million contract extension with the team but only played 11 games before getting hurt.

There is no doubt that the Cardinals will have to deal with a lot of dead money against their cap if they trade away Kyler Murray. However, that could be manageable if they have two-star rookies in the form of Caleb Williams and Marvin Harrison Jr.

Both those players have superstar traits and can take the franchise to newer heights. While Murray is not a bad quarterback, it will be better for the franchise, if they hit the reset button, and start building around Williams, who has much better physical attributes than Murray.

Kyler Murray is just 5'10 and with the way he plays football, many feel like he will be an injury-prone quarterback. On the other hand, Williams is 6'1 and has already gained comparisons to Patrick Mahomes because of his playing style.

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Caleb Williams will be a superstar in the NFL

Caleb Williams: USC v UCLA

Caleb Williams is the most talked about college quarterback since Trevor Lawrence. Some pundits hold a firm belief that the USC quarterback is better than what Lawrence was with Clemson.

Nick Wright believes that he is among the top 10 quarterbacks in football, and placed him ahead of many NFL quarterbacks. He has all the tools that will transition into the pros, and if he continues to work hard, he will be a superstar in this league.

So far in his college career, he has played for Oklahoma and USC. Currently, he is in the third year of his college career and has played 26 games. In those 26 games, he has thrown for 6727 yards for 67 touchdowns and just nine interceptions. To start this year, against San Jose State, he threw for 278 yards and four touchdowns.

Kyler Murray had his best year in the NFL in 2021, where he finished with a passer rating of 100.6 while throwing for 3,787 yards, 24 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions in 14 games.

His ability to stay healthy is a big concern as well, which is why even if the Cardinals' tanking looks obvious this upcoming season, it will make sense.

Not many teams can ditch the opportunity to draft Caleb Williams, and if the Arizona Cardinals stick with Kyler Murray, they will be continuously tarnished for making that decision.

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