It’s been five days since Kyler Murray secured his latest contract extension worth $230.5 million over five years with the Cardinals. As Murray now sits among the highest paid players in the NFL, the 24-year-old’s contract also came with a key premise that he must adhere to four hours of “independent study” during each game week in the 2022 season.
More specifically, the clause mandates that Murray study material he receives from the team beyond the regularly scheduled team meetings to help him prepare for his opponents in games. As Arizona’s veterans reported to State Farm Stadium on Tuesday for training camp, tight end Zach Ertz defended his quarterback, saying the Murray knows the Cardinals’ playbook “better than anyone on the team” and tendencies of another team’s defense.
“Every time I would ask him [Murray] a question about the opponent’s defense, he knew exactly what I was talking about,” Ertz told Cameron Cox of KPNX-TV in Phoenix. “We were on the same page.”
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Ertz also said Murray was the one who helped him learn the playbook as quickly as possible when he was traded to Arizona in October. If Murray fails to meet the requirements of his independent study mandate, it would come as an issue to his contract and threaten his guaranteed money he is expected to earn following his extension.
Murray’s extension comes a series of offseason drama between the Cardinals and the signal caller. At one point, Murray erased all mention of the franchise from his social media accounts. While both parties were unable to reach a deal for quite some time, the new deal comes as the Cardinals begin training camp and heading into their first preseason game on Aug. 12 on the road against the Bengals.
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