Report: Cardinals' Kyler Murray Out At Least 4 Games with Injury, Colt McCoy Released

The Arizona Cardinals aren't activating star quarterback Kyler Murray from the reserve/physically unable to perform list, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.

As a result, Murray is guaranteed to miss at least the first four games of the 2023 NFL season. The two-time Pro Bowler is continuing to recover from the torn ACL he suffered last December.

Arizona shed further light on its quarterback situation by releasing Colt McCoy, per ESPN's Adam Schefter. That leaves Joshua Dobbs and Clayton Tune as the top two quarterbacks on the Cardinals' depth chart.

Given the timing of his injury, most expected Murray to miss time in 2023. The Athletic's Greg Scholz pegged his return at around Week 4 or 5 based on past precedent and the available data.

Arizona's present approach at quarterback can be read in one of two vastly different ways.

Dobbs, whom the team acquired less than a week ago, has two regular-season starts under his belt since arriving in the NFL in 2017. Tune is a fifth-round draft pick approaching his rookie season. Either of the two would be among the worst starting quarterbacks in the league ahead of opening week.

Maybe the Cardinals are content to roll with Dobbs or Tune because they're reasonably confident Murray will return this year and don't want any sort of quarterback controversy to develop. Even if a losing record is all but assured by then, Murray can still shake off the rust and generate some excitement for 2024 with a strong finish to the upcoming season.

Conversely, Monday's news is something that a franchise which is prioritizing draft position over wins and losses would do. That's notable when USC star quarterback Caleb Williams tentatively projects to be the crown jewel of the 2024 draft class.

Even before his ACL injury, Arizona might have felt a growing sense of buyer's remorse on Murray's five-year, $230.5 million extension.

His 87.2 passer rating and 51.5 QBR in 2022 were both career lows, and his performance dip came after the much-publicized "homework clause" in his contract led some fans to question whether the organization fully trusted its franchise quarterback.

By elevating Dobbs or Tune to QB1 for now, the Cardinals may be looking toward the 2024 draft and laying the groundwork for life after Murray.