Cardinals’ search for new QB hits Jimmy Garoppolo ‘snag’

The Cardinals were forced to pivot on their quarterback hunt.

It was widely expected that Arizona would go after Jimmy Garoppolo in free agency to help fill out its quarterback room after the franchise parted ways with Kyler Murray.

According to The Boston Globe, conversations between the Cardinals and the 34-year-old Garoppolo “hit a snag and the Cardinals agreed to terms with Gardner Minshew II to back up Jacoby Brissett instead.

Jimmy Garoppolo of the Los Angeles Rams runs out of the tunnel prior to an NFL football game against the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field on December 18, 2025 in Seattle, Washington. Getty Images

That move came after the Cardinals missed out on Malik Willis, who is joining the Dolphins on a three-year, $67 million deal after Miami cut bait from Tua Tagovailoa and his $99 million cap hit.

Garoppolo remains an option on a deep, if uninspiring QB market that includes Kirk Cousins, Russell Wilson, Tyrod Taylor and Carson Wentz.

Garoppolo’s availability comes after two seasons as Matthew Stafford’s backup in Los Angeles. The Rams have said they would like to have him back if something better doesn’t come along for the Illinois native.

“Absolutely,” coach Sean McVay said about getting his No. 2 back. “I love Jimmy. I would absolutely want him back. I did see those reports too on [Cardinals head coach] Mike [LaFleur] trying to steal our guy, but no Jimmy’s a really good player and so we would love him back. I’m sure he’ll have multiple opportunities and then we’ll see where we’re at. He’s been tremendous for the last couple of years./

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“We’ve loved everything he’s about. You guys know how I feel about him when we’ve spoken about him and we would love him back. I’m also not naive to the fact that he’ll probably have a lot of opportunities and if those are things that he wants to pursue that give him a chance to play, I would understand that.”

He played a pivotal role for the Rams early last year when Stafford was forced to miss training camp and preseason with a back issue.

Across two seasons in LA, Garoppolo played just four games. In his lone 2024 appearance, he threw 334 yards for two touchdowns and one interception. Despite getting into three games in 2025, he didn’t attempt any passes and totaled negative 10 yards on nine rush attempts.