The Arizona Cardinals are drawing attention from fantasy football enthusiasts ahead of the 2025 season. With Trey McBride, Marvin Harrison Jr., and James Conner being selected among the top 50 picks based on FantasyPros average draft position, and Kyler Murray listed as the No. 9 quarterback, there is increased interest in how these players will perform.
Last season, the Cardinals struggled with consistency. The passing offense faced challenges as both Murray and Harrison did not meet expectations. McBride was productive but scored his first touchdown in Week 17. Meanwhile, Conner left fantasy championships early due to an ankle injury after just four carries.
Observations from training camp practices, a joint session with the Denver Broncos, and two preseason games show that this year’s offense is focused primarily on McBride and Harrison. In high-tempo training camp drills with Harrison healthy, he and McBride accounted for sixty-three percent of Murray’s targets. During the joint practice with the Broncos, seventeen out of twenty-eight passes were thrown to these two players.
McBride has been noted as a standout during training camp after finishing last season with 1,146 receiving yards. He remains an important part of Murray’s strategy both as a reliable target and an option for downfield plays. Head coach Jonathan Gannon addressed this approach by stating: “What do we need to do to win the game? (…) And if that’s the tight end gets you a bunch of balls, if that’s the tight end getting nothing — if we win the game, that’s okay.”
Despite being one of Murray’s preferred targets in red zone situations this summer, McBride’s touchdown production remains modest historically. Offensive coordinator Drew Petzing commented on this trend by saying: “I think, honestly, some of it is luck (…) There’s a lot of variability in touchdowns.”
Marvin Harrison Jr.’s training camp performance has shown signs that he could have a breakout year after increasing his target share to twenty-nine percent compared to last season’s twenty-two percent. He has demonstrated growth by making several notable catches and improving physically during the offseason; however, his connection with Murray continues to be inconsistent—Murray completed only fifty-six percent of passes aimed at Harrison compared to eighty-four percent targeting McBride.
James Conner continues as Arizona’s primary running back but faces increased competition from Trey Benson who is projected to take on a larger role than last year when he saw limited snaps and carries. This preseason suggests that Arizona will operate more evenly between their backs moving forward.
Conner acknowledged this evolving dynamic by stating: “That’s how we’ve been approaching it and looking at it, truthfully (…) He’s gonna play a lot this year.” Coaching staff remain cautious about labeling either back as dominant but indicate Benson’s involvement will increase.
Murray himself has experienced inconsistency in practices with interceptions occurring throughout various sessions; yet he may benefit this year from improved mobility following recovery from ACL surgery. Reflecting on his health status after injury recovery he said: “It lingered into last season (…) And now I feel like I’m back to where I was before that.”
As training camp progresses toward Week One, fans will be watching closely whether these observed trends translate into regular-season production for Cardinals players featured prominently in fantasy football drafts.
