Kyler Murray

Cardinals Expect Kyler Murray To Return In Week 12

November 23rd, 2022 at 9:46pm CST by Adam La Rose

The Cardinals suffered a lopsided defeat on Monday, but they could have their starting quarterback available this week when they attempt to get back on track. Signs are pointing towards Kyler Murray returning in Week 12.

Head coach Kliff Kingsbury described Murray on Wednesday as “definitely trending in the right direction” to be available on Sunday. The 25-year-old himself added that he expects to suit up against the Chargers (Twitter links via team reporter Darren Urban). That would mark his first game action since Week 9.

Veteran backup Colt McCoy has filled in for Murray over the past two games, including an impressive win over the Rams and Monday’s blowout loss to the 49ers. It was reported earlier this week that the Cardinals were at least considering keeping Murray sidelined for this week, as it is Arizona’s final game before their bye. Instead, the former No. 1 pick will apparently have the opportunity to test out his hamstring before then.

Murray has had a down year amidst the Cardinals’ continued struggles on offense this season. The Oklahoma product has posted a career-low passer rating of 86.9 while throwing 12 touchdowns and six interceptions. His rushing ability (359 yards and two touchdowns) has been a factor in his play as well, as always, but Murray’s performance has fallen short of expectations to date.

That has taken on added significance given the massive extension he signed this summer, just months after Kingsbury and general manager Steve Keim inked long-term deals of their own. With the team being unable to correct the mistakes of years past, and relations with Murray having seemingly taken a downturn, Kingsbury is reportedly under increased danger of being let go no later than the conclusion of this season.

Against that backdrop of potentially added urgency, Murray will look to return to full health and provide a boost to the team’s middling offense. At 4-7, a playoff push may not be entirely out of the question if a winning streak starts soon, including as early as Sunday against the 5-5 Chargers.

Cardinals QB Kyler Murray, T D.J. Humphries Out For Week 11

November 21st, 2022 at 10:52am CST by Ely Allen

NOVEMBER 21: Confirming previous reports, Josina Anderson of CBS Sports tweets that McCoy will “definitively” get the nod once again tonight. She adds that Murray was never truly in consideration to suit up against the 49ers, but that the Cardinals publicly kept his availability in the air to avoid tipping their hand in the lead-up to the contest.

This will be the second straight absence for Murray, but he may remain sidelined for even longer. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports that the Cardinals may very well rest their starter next week against the Chargers, allowing him to return after their Week 13 bye (Twitter link). Much could depend on the team’s performance during the next two contests as Arizona looks to get back into playoff contention.

NOVEMBER 20: This season has not gone according to plan for the Cardinals, who were 8-2 at this point last season. Things can turn towards a more positive direction with a win over their division opponent, the 49ers, tomorrow night. Unfortunately, they will be attempting to do that without their starting left tackle and potentially without their star quarterback.

Starting left tackle D.J. Humphries has been ruled out for the second-straight game as he continues to deal with back issues, according to Josh Weinfuss of ESPN. Arizona has quite a few options to replace the veteran on the blindside as they’ve been filling injury-caused holes in their offensive line all year. Starting center Rodney Hudson and starting right guard Will Hernandez are on IR while several others have missed games here and there. Josh Jones, Rashaad Coward, Lecitus Smith, and Cody Ford have all gotten opportunities to fill in with starts. Jones, Coward, and Ford will likely be the ones vying for the left tackle spot as Smith has been at the right guard position in place of Hernandez.

Quarterback Kyler Murray has been limited in practice all week while dealing with a hamstring injury. Head coach Kliff Kingsbury told the media that Murray is “progressing” with his injury and has “come a long way,” according to Weinfuss. Murray will reportedly be a gametime decision for tomorrow night’s game in Mexico City.

If Murray is unable to go, the Cardinals will have Colt McCoy behind center for the second-straight game. McCoy led the team to a win against another division-rival last week when the Cardinals beat the John Wolford-led Rams. While McCoy will technically be facing another backup quarterback tomorrow, Jimmy Garoppolo is a much more capable starting quarterback than Wolford. There were worries that the team would have to turn to third-string quarterback Trace McSorley as McCoy dealt with a knee injury, but after full participation in practice on Friday and Saturday, McCoy should be good to go.

At 4-6, the Cardinals have only one fewer win than the 49ers. A win tomorrow night could be a huge step towards passing San Francisco in the division standings and working towards the NFC’s final Wild Card spot. They’ll be attempting to do so without Humphries, and we’ll find out Murray’s status tomorrow.

Injury Updates: Dobbins, Allen, Cardinals

November 17th, 2022 at 8:05pm CST by Ben Levine

J.K. Dobbins sat out the first two games of the season, started for four weeks, and then landed on injured reserve. When Dobbins was knocked out by knee surgery in mid-October, it was thought that the Ravens running back had suffered another knee injury. However, the second-year pro made it clear that the surgery was precautionary and intended to remedy lingering effects from his earlier surgery.

“I didn’t get reinjured,” Dobbins told WBJ in Baltimore (via NFL Network’s Mike Giardi on Twitter). “I didn’t hurt myself or anything. I just didn’t feel like myself… there was some stuff in my knee that was making me not feel like myself. It wasn’t bad, I could have still played … but I’d rather be 100 percent going into the playoffs towards the end of the year so I could really do what I really need to do to help the team win.”

Following a rookie campaign that saw him finish with more than 900 yards from scrimmage and nine touchdowns, Dobbins collected 162 yards and two touchdowns this season before landing on injured reserve. As Gus Edwards continues to nurse a hamstring injury, the Ravens have leaned on Kenyan Drake to lead the RB room.

More injury notes from around the NFL…

While it sounds like Josh Allen won’t be forced to miss any time with his elbow injury, the Bills quarterback will be on a strict recovery plan for the foreseeable future. Allen told reporters that Buffalo’s training staff has him “on a specific plan that we’ll follow,” and CBS’s Jonathan Jones assumes that the quarterback will continue to be limited in practice going forward (Twitter link). Allen did acknowledge that his right elbow will eventually get back to normal, so there shouldn’t be any lingering concerns about his outlook moving forward.
Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray said he originally injured his hamstring in Week 8 against the Vikings, played through the injury, and then tweaked his hamstring in Week 9, per ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss on Twitter. Colt McCoy got the start for Arizona in Week 10, and while Murray acknowledged that he’s feeling better, he’s still unsure of his status for Monday night’s game against the 49ers.
Cardinals tight end Zach Ertz will miss the rest of the season with a knee injury. While we don’t know any specifics surrounding the injury, coach Kliff Kingsbury told reporters that the veteran will undergo surgery (per Weinfuss on Twitter). Ertz totaled 406 yards and four touchdowns on 47 receptions in 2022 before getting sidelined. The veteran inked a three-year, $31.65MM contract with the Cardinals this past offseason.
Leonard Fournette suffered a hip pointer last weekend, but the Buccaneers running back isn’t expected to miss any time following the team’s Week 11 bye, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter). Rookie Rachaad White got an extended look filling in for Fournette, finishing with 22 carries for 105 yards.
Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker told reporters that he’s still dealing with an ankle injury suffered in Week 1 that forced him to miss four games. “I’m not at 100%, no,” the veteran said (via Jesse Newell of the Kansas City Star). “I mean, if I was at 100%, I’d be doing full steps on my kickoffs or going back to the 10 yards and everything.” Butker has struggled in the five games he’s played in 2022, connecting on only 62.5 percent of his field goal attempts. He’s also missed a pair of extra point tries over the past two weeks.

Cards HC Kliff Kingsbury’s Seat Warming?

November 16th, 2022 at 10:59pm CST by Sam Robinson

Although the Cardinals notched a one-sided win over the Rams — in a game that featured two backup quarterbacks — the team only improved to 4-6. Months after extending the Steve Keim–Kliff Kingsbury–Kyler Murray trio, the Cardinals have put together an underwhelming season.

Increased chatter has pointed to discord in the Cardinals organization, according to the Washington Post’s Jason La Canfora, who notes the Murray-Kingsbury relationship hovers at the center of this. This relationship has deteriorated to the point Kingsbury, despite signing an offseason extension, may not be a lock to finish the season.

Kingsbury’s offseason extension did not merely buy him an extra year or two; the Cardinals extended both he and Keim through 2027. Financial details of this deal are not known, and the Panthers’ Matt Rhule situation may be relevant in this case. The Panthers will be off the hook for the post-2022 portion of Rhule’s salary if/when he lands a college HC position. Talk around the league has pointed to the possibility of the Cardinals-Kingsbury partnership ending in similar fashion, La Canfora adds, with the former Texas Tech HC potentially a candidate to end up back in the college ranks.

One general manager informed La Canfora he would be surprised if Kingsbury finished the season with the Cards. Considering where this situation was this offseason, that would make for a borderline-shocking outcome. But Arizona has been unable to string together wins this season, with Kingsbury’s offense being a steady concern.

Kingsbury, 43, is 28-30-1 as Arizona’s HC. The Cardinals showed signs of dominance last season, when they started 10-2 despite losing Murray for a stretch. Colt McCoy, as he did Sunday, fared well in relief of the Pro Bowl signal-caller in 2021. But the Cards tailed off, finishing 11-6 and losing five of their past six — including a blowout wild-card loss to the Rams. That made the lengthy Kingsbury extension rather surprising, and this season has not rewarded ownership’s faith.

The Cards have submitted slow starts in most of their games this season, and although productive sequences have taken place this year — a Week 2 comeback over the Raiders, a 42-point performance against the Saints, and the McCoy-led Rams victory — questions came in regarding Kingsbury’s status as the team’s play-caller recently. Kingsbury said he would be open to ceding that responsibility, but he has continued to call plays in his fourth season at the helm. The Saints matchup also featured a Kingsbury-Murray shouting match.

Upon taking the Cards job in 2019 — not long after being fired at Texas Tech — Kingsbury advocated for Murray with the No. 1 overall pick. The Cardinals became the first franchise since the 1982-83 Baltimore Colts (Art Schlichter, John Elway) to select QBs in back-to-back first rounds, trading Josh Rosen during the 2019 draft. Murray has been an original-vote Pro Bowler in each of the past two seasons, and the Cards reunited him with college teammate Marquise Brown this offseason. Of course, the Brown-DeAndre Hopkins duo playing together has been delayed due to Hopkins’ PED ban and Brown’s subsequent foot injury. That has undoubtedly hurt this Arizona attack, leading to the team’s Robbie Anderson trade. Murray has slipped to 22nd in QBR; he finished 14th and seventh in 2020 and ’21, respectively.

The Cardinals’ Week 10 win will buy Kingsbury more time, with JLC adding no change is imminent. But it appears Kingsbury will not be safe if the team continues on its current pace. This will obviously be a situation to monitor during the season’s second half.

Kyler Murray Out For Week 10

November 13th, 2022 at 2:12pm CST by Adam La Rose

NOVEMBER 13: The Cardinals announced that Murray will be inactive today, so it will indeed be McCoy starting for the Cardinals. Stafford is also out for the Rams, who will turn to Wolford in a key divisional battle of the backups.

NOVEMBER 12: The Rams are likely to be without their starting signal-caller when they host the Cardinals tomorrow. Arizona could very well be in the same position, however; ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler tweets that Kyler Murray is in danger of missing the Week 10 matchup.

Murray is currently dealing with a hamstring injury, which, Fowler notes, he will test before the game. There is reportedly “skepticism” that he will be able to play, though. The 25-year-old is officially listed as questionable.

Murray entered the 2022 season, his fourth in the league, with significant expectations. Those were driven not only by his experience and draft status as a former No. 1 overall pick, but by his five-year, $230.5MM extension signed this offseason. That deal, in turn, came shortly after head coach Kliff Kingsbury and general manager Steve Keim were re-upped and briefly included a controversial study clause.

2022 has not gone according to plan for any member of that trio. The Cardinals sit at the bottom of the NFC West with a 3-6 record, ranking mid-pack in most offensive categories. The team’s struggles to find a rhythm prompted Kingsbury to admit last month that he could cede play-calling duties. A number of absences in the receiving corps – including DeAndre Hopkins‘ PED suspension, along with Marquise Brown‘s foot injury – have contributed to the middling production.

As for Murray himself, the Oklahoma alum sits at 12 touchdowns and six interceptions on the season. His yards per attempt average (6.0) is a career-low, as is his rating of 86.9. With 359 yards and a pair of scores on the ground, he remains productive with his legs, of course, but inconsistency in the passing game has cast even more doubt on the Cardinals’ decision to make the high-priced commitment to him.

Assuming Murray is unable to suit up, the Cardinals will turn to Colt McCoy at quarterback. The veteran is in his second year in Arizona, and made three starts last season. While a matchup pitting McCoy against Rams backup John Wolford would be unexpected for both the teams and the league, it would not take away from its significance in a division which is up for grabs entering the second half of the campaign.

NFC West Notes: Carroll, Murray, Rams

August 1st, 2022 at 4:01pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Cardinals and Seahawks respectively announced Kyler Murray and Pete Carroll tested positive for COVID-19. While coronavirus protocols are absent to start training camp, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com notes the league in June informed teams anyone who tests positive must isolate for five days (Twitter link). Carroll, 70, is experiencing mild symptoms, according to the Seahawks, who add he will continue to participate in meetings virtually. As for Murray, he will not be required to be moved to the reserve/COVID-19 list. After two years of use, the NFL did away with the virus list this offseason. Murray will remain on the roster but away from the team.

Here is the latest from the NFC West:

Murray is no longer contractually obligated to complete a certain number of film-watching hours this season, but the Cards’ issues with their recently extended quarterback’s commitment have surfaced. His off-and-on offseason participation is something the team has certainly noticed, according to SI.com’s Albert Breer, who adds questions about the former No. 1 overall pick’s leadership have lingered as well. The Chris Mortensen Super Bowl Sunday report about acrimony between Murray and the Cardinals — one that labeled the 2018 Heisman winner as a “self-centered, immature finger-pointer” — drove Murray’s camp to demand an extension this offseason. As evidenced by the since-scrapped clause, the Cards do want their franchise QB to commit more to the mental side of the game, per Breer. How the team went about ensuring that will remain one of the more notable matters in modern contract history.
Former UDFA Coleman Shelton started two games for the Rams last season, the only two starts in his three-year career, but Sean McVay said (via ESPN.com’s Sarah Barshop, on Twitter) he is in the mix to start at right guard this season. Shelton has worked as a first-team guard and center in practice. The Rams lost Austin Corbett in free agency but also used a third-round pick (which means more to the defending champions than most teams, given their perennial first-round absence) on guard Logan Bruss. The Wisconsin alum joins Shelton and 2020 seventh-rounder Tremayne Anchrum (12 career games; zero starts) in competition to replace Corbett.
Although it emerged as a point of contention this offseason, Kyle Shanahan said Deebo Samuel‘s usage as a running back did not factor into his 49ers extension talks.

Kyler Murray Addresses Independent Study Contract Clause

July 28th, 2022 at 11:00pm CST by Sam Robinson

8:15pm: And like that, the clause is no more. Rapoport tweets that the Cardinals have removed the “independent study” clause in Murray’s contract.

“After seeing the distraction it created, we removed the addendum from the contract,” the Cardinals said in a statement (via ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Twitter). “It was clearly perceived in ways that were never intended. Our confidence in Kyler Murray is as high as it’s ever been and nothing demonstrates our belief in his ability to lead this team more than the commitment reflected in this contract.”

1:25pm: In making Kyler Murray the NFL’s second-highest-paid quarterback, the Cardinals included an independent study clause in his contract. The strange inclusion mandates the fourth-year passer watch at least four hours of film on his own per week during the season, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter).

Understandably, this unusual mandate has generated more attention than the five-year, $230.5MM deal itself. Addressing this matter Thursday, Murray said questions about his film-study habits are “disrespectful” and “almost a joke,” via CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones (all Twitter links).

“There’s multiple different ways to watch film. Of course we all watch film. That doesn’t need to be questioned,” Murray said, before declining to answer questions related to the film clause. “I refuse to let my work ethic and my preparation be in question. I’ve put in an incomprehensible amount of time in what I do, whether it’s football or baseball.”

Murray himself has admitted in the past he is unlikely to be a top-tier film studier among quarterbacks, making comments to the New York Times about his habits. Given his importance to the franchise, this December 2021 stance may well have been a factor for the Cardinals during their offseason negotiations.

“I think I was blessed with the cognitive skills to just go out there and just see it before it happens,” Murray said, via NYT’s Ben Shpigel, last year. “I’m not one of those guys that’s going to sit there and kill myself watching film. I don’t sit there for 24 hours and break down this team and that team and watch every game because, in my head, I see so much.”

The two-time Pro Bowler declined to say if he was mad about this film-study component of his contract, but the Cardinals going so far as to include it their highest-profile extension reveals at least some level of hesitancy about the dual-threat passer’s commitment. This is not the first piece of atypical language in a Murray contract. His rookie deal protected the Cardinals against a return to baseball, a sport he was ticketed to play — as a top-10 Oakland Athletics draftee — before his 2018 Heisman-winning season changed his career course. That transition has now led to Murray securing a monster extension — one featuring $104.3MM guaranteed at signing.

It is certainly interesting that, despite the reports of the acrimony between the fourth-year QB and the Cardinals dying down, Murray has needed to address this matter after the team made this financial commitment. Generally, talk of discontent between player and team recedes in the wake of big-ticket extension agreements. But it is clear Murray, who has followed up fast starts with suboptimal end-of-season stretches in each of his Pro Bowl years, will struggle to distance himself from this story. The Cardinals, who have never authorized a contract remotely close to this neighborhood, stand to be regularly tied to this language as well.

Details On Kyler Murray’s New Contract Extension

July 23rd, 2022 at 3:29pm CST by Ely Allen

The Cardinals made headlines Thursday with the announcement that they finally came to terms with quarterback Kyler Murray on a five-year, $230.5MM extension with a total guaranteed amount of $160MM. Now, thanks to Mike Florio of NBC Sports, we have a bit more information on the details within the contract.

Murray was guaranteed $104.3MM at signing composed of a $29.04MM signing bonus, the 2022 base salary of $965,000, the 2023 base salary of $2MM, the 2023 workout bonus of $1MM, the 2023 option bonus of $36MM, and $35.3MM of the 2024 base salary worth $37MM total. The rest of the $160MM guaranteed amount is guaranteed for injury at signing and is fully guaranteed at certain dates. In March of 2024, the 2025 base salary of $18MM fully guarantees. Murray also has a 2025 90-man offseason roster bonus of $11.9MM guaranteed for injury at signing that fully guarantees in March of 2024. $26.8MM of the 2026 compensation in guaranteed for injury at signing. In March of 2025, the 2026 compensation fully guarantees in the amount of $36.8MM. Finally, in March of 2026, the 2027 base salary of $19.5MM fully guarantees.

There are a number of roster and workout bonuses laden throughout the duration of the deal. In addition to the guaranteed $1M 2023 workout bonus, Murray is due workout bonuses of $1M in 2024, $1.86MM in 2025, $1.86MM in 2026, $1.8MM in 2027, and $1.8MM in 2028. In addition to the guaranteed $11.9MM 90-man offseason roster bonus in 2025, Murray will earn 90-man offseason roster bonuses of $17MM in 2026, $14.19MM in 2027, and $7.7MM in 2028. In 2028, Murray will also be due a $2MM training camp bonus. Not only will Murray earn the annual offseason roster bonuses, the contract is also set up for Murray to earn a per game active roster bonus of $50,000 from the 2024 season through the 2028 season for a potential of $850,000 in each of those five seasons.

From the 2024 season through the 2028 season, Murray can earn two different incentive bonuses worth $750,000 apiece in each season. The first salary escalator activates if Murray records 600 rushing yards and six rushing touchdowns in a season. The second salary escalator is based on 70% playing time in the regular season, 70% playing time in the NFC Championship game, and an NFC Championship game victory.

Murray’s total contract value of $230.5MM ranks third for NFL quarterbacks behind Josh Allen (six-year, $258.03MM) and Patrick Mahomes (ten-year, $450MM). Both the amount guaranteed at signing and the total guaranteed amount rank second among NFL quarterbacks behind Deshaun Watson‘s fully-guaranteed five-year, $230MM contract. The average annual value of Murray’s contract is $46.1MM, which also ranks second for NFL quarterbacks behind Aaron Rodgers who recently signed a deal worth $50.27MM per year.

The 24-year-old Murray has started 46 games since being drafted No. 1 overall in 2019, only missing three games last season with an ankle injury while amassing a record of 22-23-1. Murray has improved his standing as a top NFL quarterback each year in the league. After ending the 2019 season ranked as the 19th-best quarterback (according to Pro Football Focus), Murray ranked as the 11th-best quarterback in 2020 and the 9th-best quarterback this past season.

In 2022, with contract decisions now behind him, Murray will focus on furthering the team’s improvement. After improving the Cardinals’ win total from five to eight games in his first two seasons, Murray quarterbacked nine wins in 2021 en route to the team’s 11-6 record, leading Arizona to it’s first playoff appearance since 2015. Unfortunately, Murray and the Cardinals lost their first playoff game in six years and will now strive for postseason success in 2022.

The Cardinals’ offense returns many of its weapons from last year. The team only had to replace two main contributors, subbing out Chase Edmonds for Darrel Williams and losing leading receiver from last season Christian Kirk but replacing him with Baltimore’s leading wide receiver in 2021, Marquise Brown. Arizona faces the difficult challenge of a division that includes the Seahawks, 49ers, and reigning Super Bowl champion Rams, but, with no further financial distractions under center, the Cardinals are set up to continue their annual improvement.

Cardinals, Kyler Murray Finalize Extension

July 21st, 2022 at 11:20am CST by Adam La Rose

After a tenuous offseason in which he first became eligible for an extension, Kyler Murray is now on the verge of a lucrative second contract. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports (via Twitter) that the Cardinals are “working to close a monster extension” with the former No. 1 pick.

Rapoport adds that the deal will make Murray “one of the NFL’s highest-paid players,” and that is has now been finalized (Twitter link). The team has corroborated (via Twitter) that the contract is in place. The two sides have been negotiating “for weeks” to hammer out terms, and now the process has reached the finish line. The deal comprises a five-year extension, meaning that Murray (who has two years remaining on his rookie contract) will remain under contract with Arizona through 2028.

Regarding financial details, ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweets that the pact has a total value of $230.5MM, adding that the contract carries $160MM in guaranteed money. At a annual average value of $46.1MM-per-year, this deal makes Murray the NFL’s second highest-paid QB, behind Aaron Rodgers. It also ranks second in terms of guaranteed compensation, trailing only the historic $230MM deal the Browns gave Deshaun Watson, ever dollar of which is assured. Rapoport’s colleague Tom Pelissero adds that Murray will make $69MM over the first two years of the extension, and $106.15MM by year three (Twitter link).

Murray, 24, has been a full-time starter immediately since entering the NFL in 2019. After winning Rookie of the Year honors, he has been named a Pro Bowler in each of the past two seasons. That made a long-term commitment seem inevitable, but tensions have run high between the player and club leading up to this deal.

Back in February, there were reports of acrimony as the window for an extension to be signed was soon to be opened. Weeks later, Murray’s agent issued, in essence, an ultimatum to the team detailing his contributions to the franchise, along with a blueprint for an extension. Things looked bleak in terms of the relationship between the two sides at that point, but the situation steadily progressed as the offseason moved closer to the summer, when a deal of this magnitude was always more likely to be signed.

In June, it came out that an extension being finalized ahead of training camp was quite likely. Now, the Cardinals have their franchise centerpiece in place for the long-term future. Questions about his leadership will no doubt remain, and in fact be amplified, by his rank amongst the highest-paid players in the league. Delivering postseason success will likewise become an even greater expectation with this deal in place. Meanwhile, this contract shows the close link between the value of Watson’s extension and the financial terms Murray ended up agreeing to. It will be worth watching if any Lamar Jackson deal ends up taking on a similar form.

Cardinals, Kyler Murray Progressing On Extension?

July 14th, 2022 at 10:34am CST by Sam Robinson

The acrimony between Kyler Murray and the Cardinals appears long in the rear-view mirror. Arizona’s franchise quarterback may be moving toward an extension.

Mentioned months ago as eyeing a deal ahead of training camp, Murray may get his wish. Conversations between the Cardinals and Murray’s camp are going smoothly, according to ESPN.com’s Jeff Darlington, who calls an extension ahead of training camp a “very reasonable likelihood” (on Twitter).

Both Michael Bidwill and GM Steve Keim targeted the late-summer window as the time when a Murray extension would most likely happen. Kliff Kingsbury, extended along with Keim this offseason, stumped for a Murray deal as well. This process has been back on track for months. After reports of strife between Murray and the Cardinals and a report before the draft indicating the team had not yet made an offer, Murray said he was not seeking a trade and subsequently reported to OTAs and minicamp. That was interpreted as a sign he and the team were back on the same page. It appears that interpretation was correct.

The Cards have Murray signed for two more years, via a $29.7MM fifth-year option exercised in May, but first-round QBs usually sign their first extensions ahead of their third seasons. Since the 2011 CBA reshaped rookie salaries and timetables, Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Deshaun Watson, Jared Goff, Carson Wentz and Ryan Tannehill (with the Dolphins) proceeded on that course. Lamar Jackson did not, making the Murray negotiations of particular relevance to the Ravens QB.

Murray and Jackson may be the first quarterbacks to go through with extensions in the aftermath of Watson’s fully guaranteed Browns deal; thus, the structures of each extension-eligible passer’s accord could be seminal moments for the QB market. With Joe Burrow and Justin Herbert extension-eligible next year, how the Cardinals’ Murray deal looks will be important for the Bengals and Chargers’ plans.

But Murray, 25 in August, should be expected to land a deal near or beyond the $45MM-per-year point. Four passers are signed for at least $43MM AAV. He represents the Cards’ first homegrown QB with superstar potential since the franchise’s 1988 relocation. Each of the above-referenced QB extensions ran for at least four years, with Allen’s at six and Mahomes’ at 10. With Murray already signed through 2023, it should be expected his next Cards accord will run into the late 2020s. While Murray’s place in the current QB landscape is not yet known, Arizona appears ready to find out while paying him top-tier money.

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