Trey Mcbride

Career StatsB

Year	Team	GP	Rec	Yards	TD
Career		66	347	3,475	17
2025		17	126	1,239	11
2024		16	111	1,146	2
2023		17

Current Contract

Contract Value Index (CVI)

The Cardinals struck a fair deal with Trey McBride's 4-year, $76M extension ($19M AAV), earning a solid B- CVI that reflects reasonable value for an above-average starting tight end. At $19M annually, Arizona is paying market rate for a player who has established himself as a reliable target in the passing game, though they're betting on continued development rather than proven elite production. McBride's age works in the Cardinals' favor here — he's entering his prime years and should provide consistent value throughout most of this contract window. The $32.5M in guaranteed money shows appropriate risk management, giving Arizona flexibility if McBride doesn't take the next step while still securing a key offensive weapon. This deal positions the Cardinals well in a tight end market where proven contributors command premium dollars, and while McBride hasn't reached elite status yet, the contract structure suggests Arizona believes he's on that trajectory without overpaying for unrealized potential.

Performance Analysis

Trey McBride has quietly emerged as one of the most productive tight ends in the NFL, a second-round selection out of Colorado State who has developed from a raw receiving prospect into a cornerstone weapon for the Arizona Cardinals over his four seasons and 66 career games. Entering 2025, McBride earned an overall performance grade of B, a mark that undersells the trajectory he is currently riding — one that places him firmly in the conversation among the game's elite at his position. His ascent has been methodical but undeniable, and this season represents the clearest evidence yet that he has crossed the threshold from promising starter to legitimate Pro Bowl-caliber performer. The numbers backing that claim are striking. McBride is hauling in 72.9 receiving yards per game this season, a figure that doesn't just clear the NFL average of 35.0 — it blows past the elite benchmark of 55.0, putting him in rarefied company alongside players like Travis Kelce and Sam LaPorta at the top of the positional leaderboard. His 0.65 receiving touchdowns per game similarly surpasses the elite threshold of 0.45, signaling that he isn't just accumulating volume but converting in the red zone with regularity. The one area where there is room for growth is yards per reception, where his 9.83 average sits just below both the NFL average of 10.10 and the elite mark of 13.30, suggesting that while McBride wins on volume and consistency, adding more explosive chunk plays would elevate his game to another level entirely. McBride's season trend tells a compelling growth story — progressing from a C in 2023 to a C+ in 2024 before breaking out with an A-grade performance in 2025 — and there is every reason to believe the best is still ahead. If he can develop more separation in his route running to unlock bigger gains after the catch and push that yards-per-reception figure closer to the elite range, his ceiling begins to mirror what Kelce produced in his prime years in Kansas City. The Cardinals have found a franchise centerpiece at tight end, and McBride at 26 is entering the age range where elite tight ends typically produce their most dominant seasons.

Current Sentiment

The public narrative around Trey McBride has hit a fever pitch heading into the 2026 season, and the A+ sentiment grade reflects a player who has genuinely transcended his team's circumstances to become one of the most talked-about players in football. The driving force behind this wave of positive coverage is McBride's outright reception record for tight ends — 117 catches in a single season — a milestone that shifted the conversation from "very good tight end" to "generational talent at the position," with major media outlets now openly debating whether he is the best in the NFL at his spot. That debate carries real weight given his ranking among the top 15 players in football regardless of position, which is the kind of cross-positional recognition that separates franchise cornerstones from mere positional stars. His on-field performance grade sits at a solid B, which in isolation might seem modest, but the sentiment has outpaced even that strong baseline — a testament to how the reception record and his $19M AAV contract, widely perceived as elite value at the position, have fueled a narrative that feels bigger than any single stat line. The Cardinals' offseason has been incremental rather than transformative, with signings like Devin Duvernay at receiver and Teagan Quitoriano at tight end representing depth moves rather than blockbuster additions, which means McBride's stardom is entirely self-made rather than borrowed from a high-profile supporting cast. Coming off a 3-14 season, the Cardinals are not a team generating franchise-wide buzz, yet McBride has managed to generate the kind of individual momentum that makes him appointment television on his own merits. With 139 days until the regular season opener, the narrative around McBride is not just positive — it is accelerating, and there is no credible counter-argument in circulation right now.