Deal In The Desert

By : Mike Rifkin

On Thursday the Arizona Cardinals and quarterback Kyler Murray agreed to a five year 230 Million dollar contract with 160 Million guaranteed. Murray’s 46.1 Million in average annual salary is second behind Aaron Rodgers. Murray had two years and 35 Million dollars left on his rookie contract. 

In his career Murray has a 66.9 completion percentage 11,480 yards, 70 touchdowns and 34 interceptions with a 93.8 QBR. Murray has also run for 1,786 yards and 20 touchdowns. The last two seasons Murray has gotten off to MVP caliber starts and down the stretch he and the team faded.  

This chart shows Murray’s decline down the stretch of the last two seasons. Last year Murray and the Cardinals started the season 9-2 before their bye week, and went 2-4 down the stretch. The Cardinals still made the playoffs and lost to the Rams in the Wild Card Round. Murray was 19-34 for 137 yards and two interceptions including one returned for a touchdown. Part of the reason Murray struggled down the stretch last season was due to the absence of Deandre Hopkins who had an MCL injury. Hopkins will now miss the first six games of the season due to a failed drug test. The Cardinals did acquire Murray’s former college teammate Hollywood Brown from the Ravens to help the receiving group.

After the season Murray unfollowed the team on social media in hopes of getting a new deal. Murray still had two years left on his contract, but the Cardinals had to pay him. They had to pay him not because of the social media unfollow but because they extended head coach Kliff Kingsbury. Because Kingsbury was brought in and immediately told the team to draft Murray first overall they were tied together. If I was Steve Keim I would have had Murray play out this season and then decide if the extension is warranted, but the same should have been for Kingsbury before they gave him his contract. This situation could really blow up in the face of Keim. 

Is Kyler Murray an electrifying player? Yes. Is he worthy of this contract? As of right now I would say no. He needs to put the last two seasons behind him and have a consistent season. There will be a lot of heat in the desert for Murray to live up to this contract.