"Don't drag this out" - NFL analyst pressures Arizona Cardinals to wrap Kyler Murray contract drama
Aside from Deshaun Watson, Kyler Murray has been one of the core stories of the offseason.
At one point earlier this season, he scrubbed his social media of any Arizona Cardinals reference a la Russell Wilson. Of course, the quarterback is back practicing now, but the contract dispute isn't over.
One NFL analyst called for the team to bite the bullet and tie the knot with the quarterback sooner rather than later. Speaking on "The Herd with Colin Cowherd," NFL analyst Joy Taylor expressed a level of exhaustion about the entire ordeal. Here's how she put it:
"I don't like talking about people's contracts. I don't like talking about what people make. It doesn't matter to me. I'm not writing them a check, so it really doesn't matter to me what someone is paid. And in this situation, this is a good thing to have to pay for."
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Taylor went on to question why organizations "panic" when it comes time to pay a quarterback:
"I never understand why organizations get to the point where they have to pay their quarterback, and then it's this panic reaction of having to pay the quarterback. This is a good thing to have to pay for. It's actually the number one thing you should want to pay for is a franchise quarterback."
She pressurized the team to find a solution to the Kyler Murray situation, stating:
"So this discussion about how much or how long or when are we going to pay him or if you should buy him, you have the guy. What else is there to discuss? Figure the numbers out and get it done."
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She also went into numbers territory, adding:
"And you're better off getting it done early than dragging it out and losing even more leverage as an organization and having to pay more. I do agree that there is a number that you want to get within. We've used the stats and and showed the graphic many times."
Taylor also provided what she thought was the ideal budget for signing a quarterback:
"If your quarterback takes up more than I think 12.4% of your salary cap, you're not winning a Super Bowl in the last 11 years. That's a significant amount of time. So there is a number that you want to be within with your franchise quarterback. But paying your franchise quarterback is something you should budget for … "
She continued, attempting to relax the team about the decision:
"It's quarterback. It is a good thing. And when it comes to Kyler Murray, I don't know what the argument in discussion is. You look at the Cardinals' record since Kyler has arrived there and again before Kyler, it was Josh Rosen. We don't need to revisit how that went for Arizona and 2019."
She continued to compare Kyler Murray and Josh Rosen:
"They were 5-10-1 in his first year. Then in 2020 they were 8-8. Then in 2021 they were 9-5 and he missed three games. That was his record. They have gotten better every single year with Kyler Murray. Coincidentally, same with Kliff Kingsbury, which is why they gave him an extension. You have your future here…"
Finally, she concluded by giving her two cents on where Murray's talent lies before pressuing the team in harsher tones:
"I think he's somewhere in between Derek Carr and Dak Prescott. That's around the deal that you want to do with Kyler Murray... Figure it out, get it done. Don't drag this out."
Kyler Murray's career
Entering the 2022 season, Kyler Murray will be starting his fourth full season in the NFL. In his first three years, most agree he has only improved. From touchdown-per-game averages to win-loss and playoff accomplishments, the Cardinals have only gotten better with Murray in the side.
However, the largest knock on the team has objectively been their pattern of hitting a wall in the second half of every season. According to Pro Football Reference, the Cardinals started 7-1 but finished 11-6. In 2020, the team started 5-2 but finished 8-8. To put it simply, Arizona needs to find a way to finish strong in 2022.
Will Kyler Murray help them accomplish that? If so, most will agree that the team will have no choice but to write a strongly-numbered cheque to Murray.
But for that to come to fruition, the team will first need to listen to Taylor and wrap up the contract drama this offseason.