Every team in the league has contracts that seem like a bargain, and other contracts that look like significant overpays. Whether it’s because a player suffered a career-altering injury, fell off the proverbial age cliff, or a team simply had a major need at a position in thin free agency class, bad contracts get doled out all the time.
Pro Football Network’s NFL analyst Dallas Robinson took a look around the league and identified the worst contract for each team. For the Arizona Cardinals, he landed on cornerback Sean Murphy-Bunting. The Cardinals fall into the latter category with the Murphy-Bunting contract, having a significant need at the position with few options to choose from.
Murphy-Bunting, a former Super Bowl champion, signed with the Cardinals this offseason after spending the 2023 season with the Tennessee Titans. Murphy-Bunting spent the first four seasons of his career with Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, winning a Super Bowl after the 2020 season.
This offseason, looking to bolster the defensive backfield and add some championship pedigree to the team, the Cardinals gave Murphy-Bunting a three-year deal worth roughly $25.5 million. This comes just a year after he signed a one-year deal with the Titans for just $3.5 million. According to Robinson: “It’s hard to imagine another team was willing to pay Murphy-Bunting at this level, and Arizona might regret his contract as soon as this season.”
Murphy-Bunting comes to the Cardinals looking to bounce back from arguably his worst season as a pro, allowing nearly 15 yards per completion last season while also missing three games due to injury. The motivation to prove he’s still a solid cornerback in this league could prove this contract worth it, but by all appearances right now, Robinson may have nailed this one.