Whicker: Rams try to postpone the future when they face Kyler Murray’s quick feet Monday night
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Three years ago, Philip Rivers told somebody to hold his Pepsi. He went onto the dance floor at a playoff game in Baltimore.
Rivers, whose feet were his least functional collection of cells, somehow slithered his way for a 9-yard gain on third-and-eight. As the Chargers whooped and as San Diego blinked, Rivers stood there for a second and then gave the first down sign, the way the real runners do, dozens of times on an NFL weekend. It was far rarer than a pitcher hitting a home run. Funnier, too.
Rivers is now retired, followed at some point by quarterbacks like him. Where he was pointing was the future.
On Monday night the Rams will run Matthew Stafford out there against the Cardinals in a playoff game, and Arizona will counter with Kyler Murray.
On some days Stafford is a better quarterback than Murray. But there are more Murrays on the way than Staffords.
A quarterback running with intent is the most exciting, and maybe the most ironic, part of what the NFL has become.
Stafford has rushed 377 times for 1,241 yards in 13 years of NFL duty. In Murray’s three years his legs have covered 1,786 yards, at 5.7 per pop, and scored 20 touchdowns.
Of the top 11 rushing QBs in league history, four are still playing: Cam Newton (2nd), Russell Wilson (4th), Lamar Jackson (7th) and Aaron Rodgers (11th).
The yardage leader is Michael Vick, who led the league in yards-per-carry four times and had 6,109 yards, but Randall Cunningham is third with 4,928 yards. He was one of the first who was not running to escape anything. Philadelphia coach Buddy Ryan broke him in by using him on third downs. A league-wide light went on.
Steve Young ran for 43 touchdowns and 4,239 yards in 15 touchdowns and proved you could be Super that way.
Contrast it with Rivers (601 yards), Dan Fouts (476), Tom Brady (1,124), Dan Marino (87), Brett Favre (1,844), John Unitas (1,777), Phil Simms (1,252) and Len Dawson (1,293).
There were pioneers. Tobin Rote won NFL and AFL championships — with the Lions and Chargers, no less — and played in a Grey Cup final, and remains 12th on the rush list. He had a 100-yard rushing game and ran for 11 TDs in 1956.
Chicago’s Bobby Douglas threw lefty javelins that pierced receivers in practice, and in 91 NFL games he chucked 36 TDs with 64 interceptions and went 16-36-1 as a starter. But he also stomped his way to 2,654 rushing yards, many on called plays, and is still 15th on the list.
Today, almost everyone can run. Some run when they must, like Rodgers, Patrick Mahomes, Justin Herbert and Joe Burrow. Some run when they wish, like Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson and Jalen Hurts.
But when they do run, there are no fainting spells on the executive levels, even though these quarterbacks are far more expensive and valuable than ever. The rewards have outweighed their risks.
Most have proven that passers can run and runners can pass. The threat is important because it forces defenses to play zone, so the DBs can lay eyes on the quarterbacks instead of turning their backs to play man-to-man. But when they do play zone, it makes completions easier, which is why pass completion percentage has skyrocketed.
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Whicker: Rams get their energy from a Kupp that’s never full Now, Murray might run some plays from empty backfields. A fast, drooling edge rusher sees it as a green light. But if he charges too hard, Murray will disappear. If defenses play a “spy” against Murray, with no other responsibility, they lose a pass rusher or a cover guy. The running QB always has the math on his side.
Allen came from Wyoming with astonishing velocity but shaky command. He was also 6-foot-4 ⅞ and 236 pounds and ran a 4.62 40. There is no better illustration of how a quarterback can levitate a franchise.
Buffalo is in the playoffs for the third consecutive year. It hadn’t done that in 29 years. On Saturday the Bills became the first team in NFL playoff history to play a game without a field goal, a punt, and a turnover and wiped out New England, 47-17.
Only Nick Chubb, in that 2018 draft, has run for more TDs (36-31) than Allen, who also has 102 touchdown passes, 11 more than first-overall pick Baker Mayfield.
It’s true that a pocket-bound passer usually wins the Super Bowl. That passer is normally Tom Brady. The Rams think Stafford can do that, too, but the hands of time are on the side of Murray’s feet.
Rams defense keyed in on bottling up Cardinals QB Kyler Murray
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Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray put up huge numbers in two games against the Los Angeles Rams this season with 651 passing yards and 100 on the ground.
The Cardinals won the first meeting with L.A. 37-20, but they fell in the second 30-23.
A difference the second time was Los Angeles’ dominance up front. Murray still gained 383 passing yards and 61 rushing, but he was sacked four times and Rams drew multiple holding penalties which derailed drives.
The Rams’ key to another victory is winning in the trenches and not allowing Murray the chance to break out of the pocket.
“I think we did a good job as far as just bottling up the quarterback last time and not letting him get out the pocket a lot of time,” Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald said. this week. “We’ve just got to find a way to keep him bottled up, don’t let him get the edge, don’t let him get out there to be able to see downfield and make things happen.”
Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury said the Rams have the defensive line to wreck a game.
The Rams have the eighth-best adjusted sack rate in the NFL.
Donald draws a lot of attention on the inside, and many times to doesn’t matter. He had three sacks against Arizona last meeting.
Von Miller and Leonard Floyd make up a dynamic duo of edge rushers. Floyd had an interception on Murray in Week 14.
Miller, who was acquired after the first meeting between the two sides, said there is no specific scheme to contain Murray. He feels that he and his teammates just have to do their jobs.
“If you rush outside and contain, Kyler can break that,” Miller told reporters this week. “If you rush through the middle, he’ll roll out. (There’s) really nothing that you can do to prepare for a guy like Kyler Murray and that style of offense.
“We just got to believe in our scheme, believe in our players, and go out there and play the game.”
Murray said after the Week 14 loss to LA that he felt the Cardinals moved the ball well, and they just made too many mistakes like turnovers and penalties.
Los Angeles defensive coordinator Raheem Morris said he expects to get Murray’s best this week, a sentiment shared by Kingsbury.
The Rams won’t have starting safeties Jordan Fuller (ankle) or Taylor Rapp (concussion) on Monday, which heightens their need to win up front and not allow Murray the chance to extend plays.
Cardinals LB Jordan Hicks named “Good Guy,” QB Kyler Murray MVP for 2021 Arizona PFWA awards
Jordan Hicks could’ve been ticked off all year.
He could’ve been angry always, and – in this world where media relations staffs have to bring guys for interviews without reporters having access to the locker room – talked to the media far fewer times than he did. He had a roller-coaster of an offseason, most of the time leading to frustration, and yet there he was, answering questions often and thoughtfully – especially when things fell off late in the season and it gets harder to address the questions.
It’s why Hicks was named the Steve Schoenfeld “Good Guy” award winner for 2021, as voted on by the Arizona chapter of the Pro Football Writers of America.
“It’s what is expected of me, it’s what I expect out of myself,” Hicks said Thursday. “I’ve talked about it many times, it’s more than just about me. It’s about my family, it’s about respect, and representation of who I am and who my family is. It’s ingrained in me. I’m here to do my job. At the end of the day, that’s what I signed up to do – hard, easy, indifferent. No matter (my) feelings. That’s my approach.”
The award was named after Schoenfeld, a talented Arizona Republic Cardinals/NFL writers from 1988-2000, who died tragically in a hit-and-run accident. It goes to a player who is “available, insightful and professional while communicating with reporters both in person and via Zoom throughout the season.”
The Cardinals had multiple candidates – Christian Kirk, Budda Baker among them – but Hicks stood out with what he went through on his end. He played well too, with a career-best four sacks and 116 tackles, seven for loss, five passes defensed and two fumble recoveries.
Quarterback Kyler Murray was voted the Lloyd Herberg MVP. The award was named after the Arizona’s Republic’s first Cardinals beat writer when the team moved to Arizona in 1988 who passed away from cancer in 1994.
Cardinals QB Kyler Murray is eligible to get a contract extension, but when will he get one?
The Cardinals are preparing for a playoff game this weekend. Contracts are not top of mind for anyone.
But Monday was the first day that quarterback Kyler Murray is eligible for a contract extension, and that will remain a topic of interest until it is ultimately settled.
Under the CBA, rookies cannot get a contract extension/adjustment until the day after their third regular season ends. We have arrived at that moment for the Class of 2019, and while that includes on this roster cornerback Byron Murphy, among others, Kyler is the one to watch.
First, the facts: Murray remains under contract through 2022, and by May the Cardinals have to decide if they will pick up the team option for 2023. Absent a new contract, that surely will happen. Without an extension, Murray is set to make $965,000 in salary in 2022 according to overthecap.com, with $4.5 million in a roster bonus (all guaranteed) with a salary cap number of a little more than $11M.
If the Cardinals pick up his fifth-year option, it’ll be worth $28.58M (bumped up almost $3M because of his two Pro Bowl selections in his first three years.)
Murray’s cap number this year is less than $10M. That is why this season has been so important, and why GM Steve Keim has mentioned often the ability to build with Murray on his rookie deal. Because eventually, good QBs get paid, and eventually, that has a major impact on the salary cap.
Cardinals tight end Zach Ertz has become top target for quarterback Kyler Murray
When Cardinals GM Steve Keim traded for Zach Ertz before Week 6, the tight end landed in Arizona focused on learning the playbook.
Understanding a new offensive scheme requires time to grasp for any player arriving with a new franchise. In Ertz’s case, it included the challenge of picking up coach Kliff Kingsbury’s offense on the fly.
“It was a lot different from anything I’ve seen before,” Ertz said. “But once you get the basics and start understanding the fundamentals of the offense, it makes a lot of sense, and you’re able to play extremely fast.”
His comfort level with the playbook has translated to the field. Ertz has 56 receptions for 574 yards and three touchdowns on 81 targets in 11 games since the trade.
His reception total tied Hall of Famer Jackie Smith for the franchise single-season record for catches by a tight end, which Smith set in 1967. And his receiving yards as a Cardinal are the most from a franchise tight end since Doug Marsh had 608 yards in 1984.
The Cardinals have relied more on Ertz since Pro Bowl wideout DeAndre Hopkins suffered a knee injury in Week 14 against the Rams. In the four games since, Ertz has 253 yards on 28 catches and 43 targets, which leads the Cardinals’ pass-catchers.
“He’s always where he should be at the right time,” Kingsbury said. “He’s got a great feel for route running and creating separation. It’s impressive to see the trust he and (quarterback) Kyler (Murray) have developed in such a short amount of time. And it’s impressive how he’s picked up the system and is operating like he’s played in it for ten years.”
Ertz called Murray the most talented player he’s been around and praised the quarterback’s accuracy and decision-making. They constantly talk about routes, including where Murray wants Ertz against certain coverages. Their relationship off the field made it easier to develop chemistry on the field.