Getty Image / Norm Hall
The Arizona Cardinals made a big commitment to their team’s future during the offseason.
They locked down starting quarterback Kyler Murray with a 5-year, $230 million contract extension.
At the time the contract was signed, there were reports that the Cardinals had included a clause in the deal with requirements for Kyler Murray to spend a certain amount of time studying film. When this was revealed, the clause received plenty of ridicule and the Cardinals ended up removing it.
This week, Bally Sports’ Mike Silver talked to an unnamed Cardinals player who revealed that maybe the team shouldn’t have removed that clause. According to the player, Murray spent less time studying game plans and didn’t fulfill the expectations of a franchise quarterback after getting his massive contract extension.
“It was like they created a monster"
That's what a veteran Cardinals player said about teammate Kyler Murray on Sunday to @mikesilver, who details the matter. 👀
— Bally Sports (@BallySports) January 12, 2023
After quarterback Kyler Murray fought for and received a massive (five years, $230.5 million) contract extension of his own last July, “it was like they created a monster,” according to one Cardinals veteran I spoke to last Sunday. Once paid, the veteran said, Murray felt less compulsion to study his game plan or to fulfill the expectations of the franchise QB position than he had in the past, and the Cardinals’ collapse felt predictable.
This may have been what the Cardinals were concerned about when they inserted the clause in the first place.
This season was down year for Kyler and the Cardinals offense as a whole and a lack of preparation from the quarterback could be an explanation for why the team took a step back this season.
The Arizona Cardinals will definitely be hoping whoever they hire as their new head coach this offseason will be able to get more out of Murray when he returns from his ACL injury.