Kyler Murray's Comeback Sparks Cardinals Future Queries
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00:00 [MUSIC]
00:05 >> And Mike Blewett, the team that you are very accustomed to in that late
00:09 afternoon window, the Arizona Cardinals.
00:11 But a different looking Cardinals team as Kyler Murray is on track to start on
00:17 Sunday, making his 2023 season debut at home in the desert
00:21 against the Atlanta Falcons.
00:23 If there are no hiccups or drawbacks, Kyler Murray will be out there on Sunday.
00:29 The Falcons though, Blue, a slight road favorite,
00:31 land a point and a half minus 126 on the money line.
00:34 The over under 43 and a half.
00:37 What will Kyler's return, Mike Blewett, mean for this Arizona side,
00:41 who at the moment has only one win this season?
00:44 >> Yeah, I mean, there's a couple of things that we're gonna be tracking with
00:47 Kyler, not just with this game, right?
00:50 They're a one and eight football team.
00:51 They're headed towards the number one pick, and
00:53 we're dealing with an expensive quarterback that is coming off a major injury.
00:59 Their next few games after this are at Houston, they have the Rams at home, and
01:04 then they're at the Steelers and they head into a bye week.
01:06 I think there's a world in which, I have to say this,
01:09 Cardinals have been very pointed in saying that Kyler's coming back.
01:13 He's their starting quarterback when he comes back.
01:15 But you have to start considering the ramifications of what happens
01:19 if Kyler goes down again, related to this injury or not.
01:23 His contract carries a $105 million injury guarantee through 2026,
01:28 and a 124.5 million that was fully guaranteed a year early through 2027.
01:34 There are a lot of financial ramifications if he gets injured again related to this.
01:38 Or there's a $46.2 million dead cap hit to trade him next March,
01:43 should a team be interested in a four year $150 million deal with Kyler Murray.
01:49 I think that all is going to be him, and
01:52 there's a world in which he gets showcased for a month and
01:55 then they hang on to that number one overall pick.
02:01 In terms of this game, I've been very consistent in saying that the Cardinals
02:05 struggle mightily in the second half of games.
02:08 Atlanta is a top ten team in scoring in the second half.
02:11 They score 11.8 points per game in the second half.
02:14 The Cardinals are dead last in the league at 5.2 points per game.
02:18 I'm gonna lay the point in a half in the second half, and
02:22 I think that's the way to get the win.
02:23 I also think the Cardinals are gonna be challenged to get over their team total
02:27 of 20 and a half.
02:28 I think Kyler can cure some things, but this is the worst roster in the NFL.
02:33 I think they're gonna continue to struggle.
02:34 The quarterback play might be better, but it's not like Josh Jobs was bad.
02:38 I just think this team is way, way off the pace of the other NFL teams.
02:43 >> Yeah, and also Mike, yesterday Drake Lundin did get in a full practice here.
02:46 I do think the Atlanta Falcons offense will be able to score.
02:49 They've actually been very good here scoring wise under their new quarterback,
02:52 Taylor Heinecke, coming in for Desmond Ritter.
02:54 The second half against the Tennessee Titans,
02:56 they moved the ball effectively in their last game.
02:57 Even though they lost, still put up 28 points in that battle.
03:00 And certainly as we know, Arizona's defense, probably the worst in the NFL.
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