QB Murray gets new deal through ’28
The drama is over and the decision is in: Kyler Murray and the Cardinals have made a long-term commitment to each other with a new contract that would keep the quarterback in the desert through the 2028 season.
The two-time Pro Bowl selection was taken with the No. 1 overall pick out of Oklahoma after he won the Heisman Trophy and has largely delivered in his quest to make the Cardinals a better franchise.
The team announced the new contract Thursday. ESPN reported that the deal could be worth $230.5 million, with $160 million guaranteed.
Murray’s new contract puts him on par with other young star quarterbacks throughout the league like the Bills’ Josh Allen, who signed a deal worth more than $250 million last season. Murray will make an average of more than $46 million per season, which is similar to other elite quarterbacks such as the Packers’ Aaron Rodgers, Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes and Allen.
Listed at just 5-foot-10, some around the NFL worried the 24-year-old Murray was too short to be a dominant pro quarterback, but his stats through three seasons prove otherwise.
He’s completed nearly 67% of his passes through 46 career games for 11,480 yards and 70 TDs while rushing for 1,786 yards and 20 scores. Murray is particularly good at extending plays with his feet, using his scrambling ability for spectacular gains.
The Cardinals had a 5-10-1 record during his rookie season in 2019 but they improved to 11-6 last season before losing to the Rams in the NFC Wild Card round during the playoffs.
The deal brings an end to a strange, passive-aggressive offseason contract squabble. At one point, Murray wiped his social media accounts of all references to the Cardinals and it wasn’t clear whether the franchise was ready to make a long-term investment.
The two sides appeared to be on a path toward reconciliation over the last few months. GM Steve Keim said that there was “zero chance” Murray would be traded and the quarterback put on social media that he wanted to win Super Bowls with the Cardinals and called Arizona “home.”
The Cardinals had already picked up Murray’s fifth-year option for the 2023 season, further easing tensions, but Thursday’s news puts an end to any lingering questions.
The Browns are signing former firstround pick Josh Rosen to a one-year deal, ESPN reported. Rosen, the No. 10 pick in the 2018 draft, last played for the Falcons in 2021, completing 2 of 11 passes with two INTs. The Browns, who face the possibility that starter Deshaun Watson could be suspended under the NFL’s personal conduct policy, are looking to enter training camp with four QBs. Watson and Jacoby Brissett, who was acquired in free agency this offseason, will essentially both be QB1 entering training camp, but the Browns are planning to start Brissett in the event that Watson is suspended. Rosen, 25, has spent time with five NFL teams since he was drafted out of UCLA.
NHL: The Predators signed forward Nino Niederreiter to a two-year, $8 million contract. The 29-year-old Niederreiter had 24 goals and 20 assists in 75 games last season for the Hurricanes . ... The Penguins avoided arbitration with forward Kasperi Kapanen, re-signing him to a two-year deal with an average annual value of $3.2 million. Kapanen, who turns 26 on Saturday, had 11 goals and 21 assists in 79 games last season.
Tennis: The ATP canceled all four of its tournaments held in China this year, citing COVID-19 restrictions.