Cardinals' Three Biggest Draft Losers for 2025

Sean Murphy-Bunting

Before this year's draft, I wrote about Murphy-Bunting as one of the Cardinals with the most to lose during the draft.

He may have thought he was out of the woods when the team didn't take a corner in the first round, but selecting Will Johnson should just about end Murphy-Bunting's time as a starter and potentially his tenure with the team.

The Cardinals just signed him to a three-yer deal worth $25.5 million dollars last offseason, but it didn't look like a great investment during his first year with the team.

Murphy-Bunting allowed opposing quarterbacks to complete 70.7% of their pass attempts when throwing in his direction during the 2024 season. He also missed 17.5% of his attempted tackles.

Now he'll face some stiff competition to hold on to his starting job.

The difference between him and Max Melton was negligible during Melton's rookie season and he should only be better in his second year.

Johnson was seen as one of the best prospects in this class before an injury concern tanked his draft stock.

What nobody is questioning about Johnson is his talent.

There's a good chance Murphy-Bunting won't be starting for the Cardinals by Week 1 and this will likely be his last year on the roster.

Bilal Nichols

Bilal Nichols was another one of the Cardinals' free agent signings from last offseason who didn't really work out in his first year with the team.

He signed with the Cardinals on a contract with the same terms as Murphy-Bunting after a solid couple of years with the Raiders.

The hope was that he would be an upgrade for the Cardinals' defensive line.

Instead he played in just six games because of an injury and wasn't particularly effective in those games.

He was a part of just 10 total tackles and only contributed four total pressures according to Pro Football Focus.

This offseason, he hopes of retaining his starting spot had already taken a big hit as the team added Dalvin Tomlinson and Calais Campbell.

Now that they spent their first-round pick on Walter Nolen, it seems almost certain Nichols will be relegated to a depth role.

Worse, that depth role might not come with many snaps as Nichols could end up behind all three of the team's new defensive tackles on the depth chart.

His contract will likely keep him on the roster for this season, but it could be his last year with the Cardinals and his diminished role could hurt him if he hits free agency next offseason.

Kyler Murray

Kyler Murray appearing on this list isn't about what the team did during the NFL Draft. It's about what the Cardinals didn't do.

They didn't improve their offense at all.

That has been the case throughout the offseason as the team's only offensive additions will all be depth pieces in 2025, including Murray's own backup.

The coming season feels like a year where Murray needs to prove something to both Cardinals fans and the organization.

Six seasons after being selected with the first overall pick, Murray has led the Cardinals to the playoffs just once and has yet to win a game there.

In the three years since that playoff appearance, his record is just 14-22. The offense as a whole also hasn't reached the upper echelon of the league as an 11th-place finish in points per game was the team's best with Murray.

He needs to take a step towards elite in 2025 and he'll have to do it with the same supporting cast he had in 2024.

That certainly wasn't what he'd have been hoping for heading into the draft.