Michael Wilson is ready to be the Cardinals' WR2 after a 940-yard 2025 season
The 2023 third-round pick produced opposite Marvin Harrison Jr. last year. Year four is when teams traditionally lock down a long-term role.
Michael Wilson caught 67 passes for 940 yards and seven touchdowns in 2025, opposite first-time Pro Bowler Marvin Harrison Jr. The Cardinals' offense ran heavily through both. Wilson, healthy at OTAs and signed through 2026 on his rookie deal, is positioned to take the next step in 2026 under new head coach Mike LaFleur.
Who is Michael Wilson and where did he come from?
Stanford product, 6'2", 215 pounds. Cardinals took him in the third round (94th overall) in 2023. He caught 38 passes as a rookie and battled an ankle injury in 2024 that limited him to 12 games. 2025 was the first full season where he had Marvin Harrison Jr. drawing the No. 1 coverage and Trey McBride pulling safety help inside, and the production followed.
What did Wilson say at OTAs?
He framed 2026 as a continuation, not a reinvention. 'I learned a lot last year and the offense is going to look similar enough that I can play faster,' Wilson said. He also noted that the team's offensive coordinator John McNulty (retained from the previous staff) wanted him to take a bigger role in the slot in 2026, which would add inside snaps to his existing X-receiver workload.
What's his realistic 2026 projection?
If he stays healthy: 75 to 85 catches, 1,050 to 1,150 yards, 7 to 9 touchdowns. Kyler Murray is back from the 2024 knee injury and Arizona's passing game ran for 4,400 yards in 2025. The slot work would expand Wilson's route tree and give him more high-leverage targets. He's also a willing blocker in the running game, which keeps him on the field on 70-plus percent of snaps.
Why does the position fit matter?
Arizona's depth chart at WR3 thinned out after the Greg Dortch departure in free agency. The Cardinals drafted Tetairoa McMillan in the third round but he's a developmental piece. Wilson is the established veteran and his role expansion isn't optional. Arizona needs him on the field roughly 1,000 snaps to keep the offense intact.
What's at stake personally?
His contract. Wilson's rookie deal expires after 2026 and the Cardinals will need to decide on an extension. Receivers with 1,000-yard seasons in a contract year typically land $14 to $18 million per year on their second deal. The Cardinals' new front office (led by GM Monti Ossenfort, now in year four) has been strategic about extensions; the Wilson decision will be one of the offseason's earliest tests.
Players in this story
Sources
- Cardinals: Michael Wilson ready to build off big 2025 season
- Pro Football Network: Cardinals WR Michael Wilson 2025 fantasy outlook
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