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The Arizona Cardinals have been taking their sweet time offering quarterback Kyler Murray a contract extension, resulting in his agent pulling his opening proposal off the table and teams now monitoring the situation “closely,” according to an April 14 tweet from NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.
One of those teams could be the Atlanta Falcons, who traded away Matt Ryan, their longtime quarterback, to the Indianapolis Colts last month.
The Murray saga took a turn after the Las Vegas Raiders gave quarterback Derek Carr a three-year, $121.5 million contract extension on April 13.
Pelissero added that Arizona “insists Murray won’t be traded,” but that insistence is not stopping rumors from swirling.
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Falcons Tagged as ‘Obvious Candidate’ for Kyler Murray Trade
Just a few weeks ago the Falcons lost out on acquiring Deshaun Watson, leaving them with Marcus Mariota, who hasn’t been a starter since 2018, and Feleipe Franks, who has no pass attempts in his career, as their top quarterbacks ahead of the 2022 season.
So, who’s to say they wouldn’t attempt to go after Murray?
Pro Football Network’s Mike Florio said he believed Atlanta makes sense.
“The three teams that were in the hunt for Deshaun Watson but didn’t get him: Saints, Falcons, Panthers,” Florio said on the April 15 episode of NBC Sports’ “Pro Football Talk.” “Those would be the most immediate three because they already have the wallet out and opened up, and the money was there and the draft picks were there as well to try and get Deshaun Watson. So, I could see a pivot: ‘Hey, a few weeks ago we were trying to get Deshaun Watson and now Kyler Murray is available.”
Florio also named the Philadelphia Eagles and Houston Texans as two other possible trade partners for Murray, saying he “can’t imagine” teams who already have a starter in place going after a quarterback like Murray.
Would the Falcons Roll Out the Red Carpet for Murray?
The Falcons “rolled out the red carpet” to grab Watson last month and ultimately failed while also losing Matt Ryan along the way.
Would they do the same for Murray?
It’s possible that could look into it but not make an official offer because they are still dealing with a messy cap situation that includes Ryan’s $40.5 million dead cap hit. And after losing out on both Watson and Ryan, their best (and most affordable) bet could be drafting a quarterback with their No. 8 pick — if they’re that interested in immediately grabbing a future franchise quarterback.
Since drafting Murray first overall in 2019, the Cardinals have gone from winning five games in 2019 to eight in 2020 and 11 just last season.
Murray finished 2021 by completing a career-high 69.2% of his passes for 3,787 yards and 24 touchdowns with 10 interceptions. He also helped in the ground game where he logged 88 carries for 423 rushing yards and five more touchdowns. Despite an NFC wild-card loss to the Los Angeles Rams, Murray’s personal performance earned him a second-straight Pro Bowl invite.
According to MMQB’s Albert Breer, Murray and his camp are giving the Cardinals up until April 28 — the first day of the 2022 NFL draft — to offer him an extension so he has a chance to find a new home before any QB-needy teams end up drafting a quarterback.
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