When the Arizona Cardinals made Kyler Murray the first overall pick of the 2019 NFL Draft, all anyone could talk about was his height. Measuring at 5’10” 1/8 at the NFL Scouting Combine (although some will argue he’s shorter than that), many scoffed at the notion that an undersized, 207-pound passer could shine at the next level in spite of his Heisman Trophy winning pedigree and as such, questions surrounded his NFL future.
Could a man of his stature become a franchise quarterback in the pros? Is he really dedicated to football over his other passion, baseball? Could he be the straw that stirs the drink in new head coach Kliff Kingsbury‘s high-flying offense? Murray is now 11 games into his rookie campaign, but with his recent stretch of play, he’s proven the answer to all these questions is a resounding “yes”.
Kyler Murray Is Flashing the Potential for Greatness
Murray’s rookie campaign started the same way the seasons of a lot of highly-drafted quarterback do. Roughly. In fact, during the first three quarters of the Cardinals’ home opener against the Detroit Lions, he looked completely overwhelmed and his team entered the fourth quarter with a 24-6 deficit to overcome.
In the final frame however, Murray found his footing, completing an incredible 18-point fourth quarter comeback. The fact that the game ended in a 27-27 overtime tie doesn’t discount his incredible performance and it was a sign of things to come for the former Oklahoma Sooner. In spite of a shaky start, Murray had proved what he was made of, and it was time to build on that performance.
And build on it he did.
The Numbers Don’t Lie
While he’s seen his ups and downs in his debut, it’s inarguable that as of right now, Murray’s rookie season is looking like a smashing success. The 22-year-old is completing 64.6% of his passes (better than Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady) and has thrown for 2,703 passing yards (14th in the NFL).
The young signal caller has also protected the football with only five interceptions and his zero lost fumbles become even more impressive when you consider his proclivity for scrambling. Speaking of which, his 418 rushing yards rank second only to MVP candidate Lamar Jackson‘s 876 and he’s chipped in three rushing touchdowns to boot.
The only statistical area where Murray doesn’t shine as brightly is his 14 passing touchdowns (20th in the NFL), but a lot of that can be attributable to bad luck. Murray’s 3.6% touchdown percentage currently ranks 28th of 34 qualifiers, but that number is going to change in short order. While he was held without a touchdown pass in five of his first eight NFL starts, the rookie has thrown seven of them over his last three contests. In short, positive regression has arrived in a big way.
Even more impressive is the fact that he’s done all of this in spite of a struggling offensive line (the 35 sacks he’s taken are second-most in the NFL, only behind Jameis Winston‘s 36) and a frequently banged up and often inconsistent supporting cast.
Success Against a Dominant Opponent
The biggest exemplar of Murray’s remarkable development has been his performance against his divisional rivals, the 10-1 San Francisco 49ers. The 49ers have an elite defense that has shut down opposing quarterbacks all year long and just decimated Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers last weekend.
Murray has faced the ‘9ers in two of his last three starts and the results have been incredible. While the Cards weren’t able to secure a victory either time, Murray’s performance has been the definition of “elite”. The rookie has completed 41 of 57 passes (71.93% completion percentage) for 391 yards, four touchdown passes and zero interceptions, resulting in a stellar 114.0 quarterback rating.
As icing on the cake, he’s chipped in 13 carries for 101 yards on the ground, and added a rushing touchdown for good measure. That kind of production against a defense of that caliber is positively insane.
The Cardinals schedule isn’t easy over the final five weeks as dates with the Rams (twice), the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Cleveland Browns, and the Seattle Seahawks loom large, but Murray has proven he can rise to the occasion against the toughest of opponents.
A Bright Future for Kyler Murray
Kyler Murray is playing on a 3-7-1 team in a smaller market and that’s the sole reason why he hasn’t been lauded as widely for his stellar performance. But make no mistake about it, he is proving exactly why the Cardinals made the right decision by taking him at the top of the draft.
While the Cards are going to be on the outside looking in when playoff time rolls around, fans of this team should be ecstatic to have Murray at the helm. The future is bright for this incredibly talented young man and that is a huge relief for a franchise that has been struggling to find a long-term solution at the quarterback position since Kurt Warner retired in 2010.
In the opinion of this writer, Murray has future MVP potential, and if his developmental curve continues at its current rapid pace, the Cardinals could make noise next season and find themselves in the post-season in his sophomore campaign, even in the NFL’s toughest division. There is no question that Kyler Murray is going to be a difference-maker as an NFL quarterback.
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