Cardinals Signing QB Gardner Minshew For One Year, $8.25M

According to Adam Schefter, the Cardinals are signing QB Gardner Minshew to a one-year deal worth up to $8.25 million. 

He was the backup in Kansas City this past season. His contract with Arizona works out to high-end backup money as well, so there’s a good chance the Cardinals view him similarly. 

Minshew avoided a torn ACL late last year despite an initial scare and has a clean bill of health for 2026. 

This is interesting for Arizona. The Cardinals were linked to Malik Willis and Jimmy Garoppolo, with veteran Jacoby Brissett still under contract in 2026. However, Willis signed with the Dolphins, there’s no word on Garoppolo yet and Brissett has come up in trade talks for other teams, including the Jets. 

Minshew, 29, is a former sixth-round pick of the Jaguars out of Washington State back in 2019. He signed a four-year rookie deal worth $2.7 million and made a base salary of $2,540,000 for the 2021 season. 

The Jaguars traded Minshew to the Eagles coming out of the preseason in 2021 in exchange for a sixth-round pick. He signed on with the Colts for the 2023 season before signing a two-year, $25 million deal with the Raiders back in March of last year to compete for their starting job.

The Raiders released Minshew back in March and he later signed on with the Chiefs. 

In 2025, Minshew appeared in four games for the Chiefs and completed six of 13 pass attempts for 37 yards and an interception.