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Arizona Cardinals tight end Trey McBride definitively ascended into the top tier of his position group last season, earning an invitation to the Pro Bowl Games and helping his team double their win total from the previous year. The 25-year-old signed a $76 million contract extension for his efforts and is aiming even higher ahead of the 2025-26 NFL campaign. Much higher.
McBride is intent on strengthening his already prosperous connection with quarterback Kyler Murray, who once again finds himself under pressure to perform up to his abundant capabilities. The duo exhibited excellent chemistry in 2024-25, but McBride is hoping to imitate all-time great QB/TE link-up Patrick Mahomes-Travis Kelce next season.
“Travis would always give us nuggets like, ‘be friendly to the quarterback, make sure you and your quarterback are on the same page,'” the 6-foot-4, 246-pound talent out of Colorado State told ESPN’s NFL Live at Tight End University.
“And he kind of plays with a little freedom. Him and Mahomes have this nice connection, and I kind of took that like, ‘why can’t Kyler and I have that same connection?’ I’ve tried to have that relationship, that growth with Kyler and just continue to make plays for him.”
McBride and Murray are not going to obtain prime Mahomes-Kelce levels of magic. That is possibly the best QB/TE tandem in NFL history. It is encouraging to know that the Cardinals standout is reaching for the sky, however. He and his signal-caller may not meet that standard, but they can still comprise a potent passing attack moving forward.
“Why can’t Kyler and I have that same connection?”
Trey McBride wants to build a Kelce-Mahomes–type bond in Arizona pic.twitter.com/oMXyYGrA84
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) June 24, 2025
This is a pivotal season for the franchise as a whole. The fan base is optimistic that the Cardinals can build on their 8-9 record from last season and take a definitive step into relevance this year. If the team is going to achieve such a mark, it must unleash plenty of offensive firepower. Marvin Harrison Jr. jumps out as the natural choice for such a job — given his collegiate excellence and vast reservoir of talent — but Trey McBride is undeniably a vital part of this unit.
The 2022 second-round draft pick posted 111 receptions for 1,146 yards and two touchdowns in 16 games last season. Ideally, he and Harrison can each produce big numbers in the offense. Murray showed noticeable signs of improvement and could potentially elevate even further under the right circumstances. McBride is clearly committed to bringing out the best in the two-time Pro Bowler, as he strives to emulate the Mahomes-Kelce model in Glendale, Arizona.
The Cardinals are planning to let Kyler Murray go off-script more just as he did early in his career with future Hall of Fame WR DeAndre Hopkins, and if the squad can successfully re-integrate that strategy, then McBride should...
