20:15: And so, the clause no longer exists. Rapoport tweets that the Cardinals have removed the “independent study” clause from Murray’s contract.
“After seeing the distraction it created, we removed the contract addendum,” the Cardinals said in a statement (via ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Twitter). “It was clearly perceived in a way that was never intended. Our confidence in Kyler Murray is as high as ever and nothing demonstrates our belief in his ability to lead this team more than the commitment reflected in this contract.”
1:25 p.m.: Making Kyler Murray the second-highest-paid quarterback in the NFL, the Cardinals included a free-study clause in his contract. The odd inclusion forces the fourth-year pass rusher to watch at least four hours of film on his own per week during the season, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter).
Understandably, this unusual mandate has generated more attention than the five-year, $230.5 million deal itself. Addressing the issue Thursday, Murray called questions about his film study habits “disrespectful” and “almost a joke,” via Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports (all Twitter links).
“There’s a lot of different ways to watch movies. Of course we all watch movies. There’s no question about that,” Murray said, before declining to answer questions related to the movie clause . “I refuse to question my work ethic and my preparation. I have dedicated an incomprehensible amount of time to what I do, whether it’s football or baseball.”
Murray himself has admitted in the past that he’s unlikely to be a top-tier film scholar among quarterbacks, commenting to the New York Times about his habits. Given his importance to the franchise, this December 2021 position could have been a factor for the Cardinals during their offseason negotiations.
“I think I was lucky enough to have the cognitive skills to go there and see it before it happened,” Murray said, via the NYT’s Ben Shpigel , last year. “I’m not one of those guys that sits there and kills himself watching film. I’m not sitting for 24 hours breaking down this team and that team and watching every game because, in my head, I see a lot.”
The two-time Pro Bowler declined to say whether he was crazy about that film study component of his contract, but the Cardinals going so far as to include it in their highest-profile extension reveals at least some level of hesitation about the double threat. commitment of the passenger. This isn’t the first piece of unusual language in a Murray contract. His rookie deal protected the Cardinals from a return to baseball, a sport he was ticketed to play as a top-10 draftee of the Oakland Athletics, before his 2018 Heisman-winning season changed his professional course That transition has now led to Murray securing a monster extension, one with $104.3 million guaranteed at signing.
It’s certainly interesting that, despite reports of acrimony between the fourth-year quarterback and the fading Cardinals, Murray had to address this matter after the team made this financial commitment. In general, talk of player-team discontent subsides in the wake of big-ticket extension deals. But it’s clear that Murray, who has followed fast starts with suboptimal late-season stretches in each of his Pro Bowl years, will struggle to distance himself from that history. The Cardinals, who have never authorized a contract anywhere near this range, are also regularly tied to such language.