The Arizona Cardinals announced that they will sign Pro Bowl tight end Trey McBride to a four-year contract extension that will keep him in the desert through 2029. The deal will be worth $76 million, McBride’s agents told ESPN’s Adam Schefter, making him the highest-paid tight end in NFL history.
“He had a really good year, but he hasn’t hit his ceiling,” said Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon at the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine. “He’s working on different parts of his game, but he needs to keep doing what he’s doing. He’s not a one-trick pony.”
Arizona Cardinals are making Pro-Bowl TE Trey McBride the highest-paid tight end in NFL history with a four-year, $76 million extension, per agents @MSWENSON78 @CJLaBoy @dhendrickson41 of @wassermannfl.
The deal includes $43 million guaranteed and a $19 million average per year,… pic.twitter.com/Gil0BQKxhq
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 3, 2025
A second-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, McBride has made 221 receptions in 41 NFL starts. He easily had the best season of his career last year, catching 111 passes for 1,146 yards. This performance earned the 25-year-old a Pro Bowl nod last season.
The Cardinals are building something
I really like the approach the Arizona Cardinals have taken to keep talented players already on the roster. Last off-season, they signed defensive leader and two-time All-Pro safety Budda Baker to a three-year contract extension. He rewarded the Cards with a Pro Bowl season that saw him finish with the second-most total tackles in the NFL. They also signed workhorse running back James Conner to a two-year extension during the season. He has been one of the team’s most important vocal leaders on the offensive side of the ball.
Now, they have locked up Trey McBride for the next five years, giving quarterback Kyler Murray a target he can rely on week in and week out. And they’re signing McBride now before other teams pay their tight ends obscene amounts of money.
San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle is due for an extension next off-season and will probably be paid $20 million a year. Miami Dolphins Pro Bowl tight end Jonnu Smith will also demand a lofty contract extension if he continues to prove his worth in South Beach. And, in a few years, the Raiders will have to pay Brock Bowers, who will probably reset the tight end market and make upwards of $25 million or maybe even $30 million a year! In two years, McBride’s extension will look like a cheap contract for a Pro Bowl-caliber player.
all of us rn pic.twitter.com/IDUNZbEJMm
— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) April 3, 2025
I also think that the Cardinals had a sneakily good off-season. They signed one of the best available edge rushers in Josh Sweat while adding a bona fide defensive leader with Calais Campbell. They’ve also added solid contributors in defensive lineman Dalvin Tomlinson and linebacker Akeem Davis-Gaither. Lastly, they brought in Jacoby Brissett, a good quarterback room leader who can be a serviceable backup should Kyler Murray end up having to deal with injuries at any point.
The Arizona Cardinals have quietly made themselves much better and more solid, while the Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers have gotten significantly worse. If they can stay afloat in the NFC West, they might surprise everybody and make the playoffs as a Wild Card team.
