According to Adam Schefter, the Arizona Cardinals and quarterback Kyler Murray have come to terms on a 5 year $230.5M extension which will make him one of the league’s highest paid QBs.
The deal reportedly includes $160M in guaranteed money, and will keep the former Oklahoma Sooners QB in the desert through the 2028 season. On an annual basis, the deal will see Murray paid $46.1M which would make him the league’s 2nd highest paid quarterback trailing only Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers ($50.3M).
Murray was under contract through 2023 after the club exercised his 5th year option. However, the former Heisman winner made it clear to both the media and team alike he was unhappy with his contract situation.
Erik Burkhardt, who represents Murray, had been negotiating terms with Cardinals GM Steve Keim since the conclusion of the 2021 NFL season. At one point, the Arizona signal caller scrubbed all references to the Cardinals organization from his social media pages in an attempt to voice his displeasure with negotiations.
Originally selected 1st overall in the 2019 NFL draft, Murray has thrown for 11,480yds, 70TDs and 34 INTs in his 46 game NFL career. The versatile dual threat QB has also added 20 rushing TDs and 1,786yds on the ground across 3 seasons with the Cards.
While many analysts openly wondered whether Arizona would realistically consider trading the 2019 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year if negotiations deteriorated, the club remained adamant throughout the process that there was “zero chance” they would consider moving their franchise QB.
Although Murray has not spoken to the media since March, the 2x Pro Bowler didn’t appear concerned with the status of his new deal, telling reporters “I’m an Arizona Cardinal…I’ve done nothing but give my all to the Cardinals and will continue to do that. I’m not really too worried about my future as a Cardinal.”
With a new contract now secured, Murray will look to lead the Cardinals into training camp, before opening their preseason with a game against the Cincinnati Bengals on August 12th.
Arizona begins their 2022 regular season campaign with a game vs. the Chiefs on September 11th at 4:25pm ET.
-Kyle Skinner
Twitter: @JKyleSkinner
Photo: All-Pro Reels. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.