Arizona Cardinals take tight end Trey McBride out of the bubble wrap

Rookie Trey McBride finally got to contribute to the Arizona Cardinals during the team’s Week 4 win over the Carolina Panthers

A whole contingent of Arizona Cardinals fans were thrilled back in April when the club drafted tight end Trey McBride. The second-round selection was considered a top-notch talent, and the club felt extremely fortunate that the youngster was still available at the 55th-overall pick.

All of that excitement was tempered a bit during Arizona’s first three games when McBride was on the field for just six offensive snaps. In fact, Cards followers were somewhat bewildered when the 22-year old wasn’t even activated for the squad’s Week 1 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.

Some began to wonder if Cardinals general manager Steve Keim had misfired on yet another valuable draft choice. Did the Colorado State University product have what it would take to succeed in the National Football League?

Trey McBride is a weapon the Arizona Cardinals offense must unleash

This past Sunday, McBride finally got to show Arizona what he’s capable of during the team’s 26-16 victory over the Carolina Panthers. It wasn’t an Offensive Player of the Week-type performance by any means, but it certainly was nice to see the enthusiastic McBride get involved.

McBride recorded the first reception of his professional career against Carolina, when he hauled in a six-yard toss from quarterback Kyler Murray on the first play of the contest. The 6 foot 4, 246 pounder was also on the receiving end of an 11-yard strike in the third quarter and a seven-yard pass in the fourth.

Ahead of McBride on the Cards’ depth chart is Zach Ertz, the three-time Pro Bowler who they acquired from the Philadelphia Eagles last year. Maxx Williams, another veteran tight end, is also in the mix.

Kudos to Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury for finally including the talented McBride in the offensive gameplan. Continuing to utilize the young pass-catcher during the remainder of the campaign could only benefit the Redbirds’ inconsistent scoring attack.