Cardinals Biggest Roster Snubs—and Why They Should've Made the 53

The Arizona Cardinals dropped these players from the active roster. Why?

Aug 13, 2026; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. (18) celebrates with tight end Teagan Quitoriano (47) after catching a touchdown pass during the first quarter of a preseason game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Brytus-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

ARIZONA — The Arizona Cardinals officially have their initial 53-man roster and practice squad (mostly) set for the 2026 season.

It was a tough weekend for the Cardinals, who sent roughly 40% of their roster packing after weeks of evaluation in training camp and preseason. Deciding on a 53-man roster is never easy, regardless of the team or circumstance.

Truth be told, there wasn't a ton of true snubs from roster cuts — Arizona had a surplus of talent at various spots while the Cardinals suffered at others.

Still, these guys could have easily made the 53-man roster:

WR Ihmir Smith-Marsette

Arizona Cardinals receiver Ihmir Smith-Marsette (9) practices during training camp at State Farm Stadium in Glendale on July 26, 2026. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

The Cardinals' wide receiver room truly felt like it was up for grabs for anybody to make the roster. Arizona stockpiled their room with seven total wideouts, and Smith-Marsette wasn't one.

Smith-Marsette was an early leader to make the team thanks to training camp playmaking and special teams/return prowess. However, Jalen Brooks and Simi Fehoko made the most of preseason opportunities.

Smith-Marsette barely missed out on the roster, and with the bottom of the barrel guys mostly needing to contribute on special teams, it felt like Smith-Marsette was the better solution over Brooks in that aspect.

Even then, it's understandable why Brooks was kept.

CB Sean Murphy-Bunting

Dec 15, 2024; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Arizona Cardinals cornerback Sean Murphy-Bunting (23) against the New England Patriots at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

This was a massive vote of confidence in Garrett Williams' achilles being fully healthy.

Murphy-Bunting has six prior years of experience in the league, which paced the Cardinals' cornerback room by multiple seasons. His versatility and recent move to the slot also played in his favor, though he lost out to Kei'Trel Clark and Max Melton among the others.

Perhaps this was a move based off youth/potential, which makes sense. Murphy-Bunting also missed last season with an offseason ACL injury. However, he was one of the biggest names that was sent packing before ultimately landing in Tampa Bay on their practice squad.

RB Evan Hull

Aug 28, 2026; Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA; Arizona Cardinals running back Evan Hull (43) rushes for a touchdown during the second quarter against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Hull was a late push for a potential roster spot, and his final audition in Green Bay was undoubtedly his greatest. In a Cardinals offense that will run the ball, and hopefully often, Arizona surprisingly only kept three players at the position — even with a banged up Jeremiyah Love and James Conner/Trey Benson on injured reserve.

Hull clearly showed a capability to succeed in LaFleur's system. He was brought back to the practice squad and could very well be elevated to the roster throughout the season, though Arizona surprisingly omitted a fourth running back from the list with Hull touted as fans' biggest name that missed out.

CB Starling Thomas

Aug 28, 2026; Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA; Arizona Cardinals cornerback Starling Thomas V (24) celebrates with defensive tackle Brodric Martin-Rhodes (98) after recovering a fumble during the third quarter against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Thomas was projected to be the team's starting cornerback before his season-ending ACL injury last training camp. Thomas recovered, though players typically take a full year of play time before they return to their normal selves.

Unfortunately, the Cardinals' efforts to bolster the cornerback room within recent years led to a logjam, where some sort of talent was going to fall through the cracks. That happened to be Thomas, who was on the outside looking in of a surprisingly small cornerback room of five.

Granted, he re-signed on the practice squad, so it's not as if the Cardinals completely gave up on him — though if he can make a full recovery, Thomas' play is worthy of a roster spot.

TE Teagan Quitoriano

Aug 13, 2026; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. (18) celebrates with tight end Teagan Quitoriano (47) after catching a touchdown pass during the first quarter of a preseason game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Brytus-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Cardinals are suspected to run plenty of heavy tight end personnel packages, so the prevailing thought was Arizona would at least keep four players at the position. With Tip Reiman likely heading to PUP/reserve (which he ultimately did), there was a need for another run-blocking presence.

All of which set up Quitoriano to at least make the initial 53-man roster — though that wasn't the case as the Cardinals traded for Hunter Long and only carried three tight ends into the season with Reiman out.

Quitoriano isn't an all-star tight end, though he's a viable blocker and could have easily made it through. He ended up re-signing on the practice squad.