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Note: An original version of this article appeared over at our friends at BellyUp Sports. Read more of their stuff here.
After months of the Arizona Cardinals and quarterback Kyler Murray going back and forth about a contract… it’s finally resolved. Murray recently signed a five-year deal worth around $230.5M that will keep him in Arizona for quite some time. Head Coach Kliff Kingsbury and General Manager Steve Keim wanted to get this deal done as soon as possible before the season started. The deal runs through the 2028 season. The annual value that he will be making is $46.1M per season. Murray is second behind Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers that makes $50.2M per year.
Murray on His Contract
“My job is to fulfill my promise and bring a championship here. There’s no questions about it,” Murray said. “There’s no other place that I wanted to be this whole time. And I mean that.”
“All the social media stuff and all that, that’s gonna happen regardless,” Murray said. “Play good, they love you. Play bad, they hate you.
“It is what it is. That’s just this day and age. You gotta have tough skin. So, I’ve grown up in it. So, it’s nothing new,” per Murray from ESPN.
Expectations for 2022 Season
Expectations will be high in Arizona this season and for Murray, it will be even higher. After recently signing his first big contract extension, the Cardinals will look to compete in the NFC West this upcoming season. Cardinals had an earlier first-round exit last season in the playoffs against the reigning Super Bowl Champs the Los Angeles Rams. Kyler will have to rebound from that loss and move on without his top wideout DeAndre Hopkins. Hopkins will be suspended for the first six weeks of the season due to performance-enhancing drugs. On the plus side, the Cardinals traded for Murray’s college teammate Marquise “Hollywood” Brown from the Baltimore Ravens. Keep an eye out for Arizona to compete for the division title in 2022.
Murray Outlook
Murray will have a great start to his fourth year in the NFL. He and the Cardinals have something to prove and statement to the league that the former first round pick in 2019 will succeed successfully. I am expecting Murray to throw for about 3,500 passing yards, throw 25-28 touchdowns, rush for another 6-8 touchdowns on the ground and throw roughly 12 INT’s. I’d say that would be a pretty solid season for the 24-year-old from Texas.
