Baylor Cupp’s latest NFL stop ended quickly. The Arizona Cardinals released the tight end on Aug. 24, nine days after signing him as depth following injuries at the position. For Texas A&M fans, the move is another footnote in a career that never matched the hype that arrived in College Station.
Cupp was one of the prizes of the 2019 recruiting class: a 6-foot-6, five-star, athletic tight end from Brock who drew offers from Alabama, Georgia, LSU and Texas.
He chose the Aggies and was billed as a future featured piece in the passing game. What followed was almost nothing on the field. An ankle injury in 2019 fall camp cost him a redshirt year.
A shoulder injury the next August wiped out 2020. When he finally appeared in 2021, he played in 10 games with one start and recorded zero receptions. After the season he entered the transfer portal.
That is the part that still stings in Aggieland. Elite tight end recruits are supposed to develop into difference-makers.
Cupp never did it in maroon. Injuries were real and documented, but three years produced no catch and no lasting impact. He left as a cautionary tale of how quickly five-star promise can evaporate when availability and production do not follow.
At Texas Tech he at least put numbers on the board—23 catches for 246 yards and four touchdowns over two seasons—but he went undrafted in 2024.
A brief look with the Chiefs (one regular-season game, no receptions), a cut by the Ravens, and a UFL stint with the Dallas Renegades preceded the Cardinals’ short-term addition. Arizona needed bodies after placing a tight end on injured reserve. Cupp did not stick.
From an Aggie perspective, the Cardinals’ decision is unsurprising. The traits that made him a recruiting star—size, length, high-school production—never translated into consistent college or pro production.
Fans who watched him sit out two seasons and then vanish from the stat sheet in 2021 already knew the ending. Cupp is now a 26-year-old journeyman looking for the next camp invite.
Texas A&M has moved on. Later tight end classes produced more reliable contributors. Cupp’s story is a reminder that recruiting rankings are a starting point, not a guarantee.
Injuries happen, development stalls, and sometimes a five-star simply does not become the player everyone expected when he first put on the maroon and white.
The Cardinals’ release closes another chapter. For most Aggies, that chapter was already closed years ago.
