Jonathan Gannon spent Monday night telling reporters that Kyler Murray remained the Cardinals starting quarterback. Then Tuesday happened. Now Jacoby Brissett is starting Sunday in Seattle.
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Gannon says this is about Murray's lingering foot issue. And he insists he wanted to bring clarity to the team as early as possible.
"I think, you know, with the clarity that it provides, game-planning for our team, I think that's important," Gannon told reporters.
Of course, that clarity could have stayed internal, as written by Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. No rule obliged Arizona to tell the Seahawks on Tuesday afternoon what Sunday's plan would be.
So this may be something else.
The backdrop matters, Florio opined. The league is clearly extra sensitive to injury report fog after the NBA gambling scandal and after the Ravens incorrectly listed Lamar Jackson in Week 8.
Last week, Gannon volunteered that Brissett would start even when he did not have to. Then he did it again this week. Five days early.
Feels like the NFL would prefer teams over-comply than toe the line.
There is also the Murray question. He is the starter. He is paid like the starter. Brissett is simply playing better. And declaring Brissett as QB1 while calling Murray "not quite ready" lets Arizona avoid the mess of openly benching a healthy $40 million quarterback.
How long can that hold. If Murray is "100 percent" in December, what then.
Remember this part too. Murray has $39.8 million fully guaranteed in 2026. Another $19.5 million locks in four months from now. If Arizona sends a clear message they are done with Murray, interested teams will try to squeeze them to eat money.
So for now, the Cardinals ride with Brissett and keep Murray in bubble wrap. That might not change for a while.
