The Arizona Cardinals just took a big hit in their secondary, as cornerback Sean Murphy-Bunting has been placed on the reserve/non-football injury list. It’s a brutal blow for a young group that already had its share of struggles during the 2024 season.
Cardinals CB Sean Murphy-Bunting Placed on NFI List With Undisclosed Injury
Murphy-Bunting was a second-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft and spent his first four seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Central Michigan product finished second in the MAC with five interceptions in his sophomore year, then followed that up with 37 tackles, five pass breakups and two interceptions as a junior.
He left school with a year of eligibility remaining to enter the draft and was the fourth cornerback selected that year. Tampa Bay also took Jamel Dean, another corner, in the third round.
Murphy-Bunting started his rookie season as a backup and primarily played on special teams. He eventually saw time at both outside corner and nickel, finishing with 44 tackles, eight pass breakups and three interceptions.
He was named a starter heading into the 2020 season and started all four playoff games during Tampa Bay’s run to a Super Bowl 55 title. That year, he posted a career-high 70 tackles, three pass breakups and one interception during the regular season, adding six tackles and a pass breakup in the Super Bowl.
Murphy-Bunting dislocated his elbow in the 2021 season opener and was limited to nine games. In 2022, he lost the starting outside corner job to Dean but still logged 31 tackles, seven pass breakups and two interceptions over 12 games.
The Bucs let him walk in free agency, and he signed a one-year deal with the Tennessee Titans. He started 14 games for Tennessee, recording 57 tackles, eight pass breakups and two interceptions. That marked the first time in three seasons Murphy-Bunting didn’t make the playoffs, as the Titans finished 6-11.
In the 2024 offseason, he signed a three-year, $22.5 million deal with the Cardinals and quickly became the veteran presence in the cornerback room. He started 15 games last year, tallying 52 tackles and three interceptions on a Cardinals defense that ranked No. 27 in PFSN’s Defense+ metric. Heading into the offseason, he remained the unit’s most experienced player — until now.
The #AZCardinals have placed CB Sean Murphy-Bunting on the reserve/non-football injury list, ending his 2025 season before it began.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet)
Ian Rapoport tweeted, “The #AZCardinals have placed CB Sean Murphy-Bunting on the reserve/non-football injury list, ending his 2025 season before it began.” The nature of the injury hasn’t been disclosed, but it’s a major loss for Arizona’s defense.
The Cardinals started last season 6-4, but missed the playoffs after finishing 8-9. They were in decent shape heading into their Week 11 bye, but a three-game losing streak and getting swept by the Rams and Seahawks dashed any postseason hopes.
Arizona had the NFL’s worst pass success rate on defense and didn’t do much better against the run, ranking 28th in success rate. The front office clearly tried to fix that in the draft — five of the team’s first six picks were on defense, including two cornerbacks. Michigan’s Will Johnson, taken in the second round, is expected to start as a rookie. Garrett Williams and Max Melton will now have to carry this young group without their veteran leader.