McElroy was selected in second round in 1996 by the Arizona Cardinals at number thirty-two. He has become somewhat of a cautionary tale against football players leaving school early. Aggie head Coach R. C. Slocum and others speculated that if McElroy had returned in 1996, he would have benefited from playing with a more prolific passer in Branndon Stewart and probably would have faced less eight-man defensive fronts.
McElroy was selected by the Arizona Cardinals in the second round of the 1996 draft at number thirty-two. He has become an example of what can happen when football players leave school prematurely. Aggie head Coach R. C. Slocum and others thought that if McElroy had stayed in college for another year, he would have been a better match with the team's more accomplished quarterback, Branndon Stewart, and might have faced fewer powerful defensive lines.