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Arizona’s “ Hail Murray ” miraculous connection between Kyler Murray and DeAndre Hopkins saw the Cards take the lead in NFC West. It also pushed the quarterback into MVP conversations as we head into a pivotal Week 11 showdown between the Cardinals and the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday night.
Murray was the catalyst for the 6-3 Cards, compiling 2,375 passing yards, 17 passing touchdowns for eight interceptions, while adding 604 rushing yards and 10 rushing yards in nine games.
Murray is on track to become the first NFL player to have 4,000 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards in one season (pace: 4,222 passing yards, 1,073 rushing yards). The Cards QB is also on track to be the first player with more than 30 TD passing and more than 15 TD running in a season (pace: 30.2 TD passing, 17.7 TD running).
For his part, Murray does not put his name in the MVP conversation.
“I didn’t do anything, so as far as the MVP deal goes, I’m not worried about it,” Murray said, via the team’s official website. “As far as my personal confidence, do I think I’m one of the best in the league? Yeah, sure. I think everyone should be confident in themselves.”
The end of the 23-year-old quote is dead. Every NFL player needs to have the confidence to consider themselves among the best, otherwise they might not be able to put in the effort to be successful at this level.
As for the part about doing nothing to earn a spot in the MVP conversation, that’s up for debate.
Murray leads all QBs with 604 rushing yards and 10 rushing TDs this season. The last player to lead the QB squarely in both won the MVP title: Cam Newton in 2015.
The signalman is poised to become the first quarter with more than 1,000 rushing yards and more than 10 rushing TDs in a single season in NFL history (pace: 1073 rushing yards, 17 TD rushing race). His 67.1 rushing yards per game would be the third largest by a QB in the Super Bowl era if he continues his pace.
While his short and intermediate passing accuracy has suffered at times this season, the QB has been on the money with his deep shots, including Sunday’s mind-boggling connection with Hopkins. Murray has generated 6 touchdowns and 0 INT on deep passes (over 20 aerial yards) this season, according to Next Generation stats, and his 129.1 passer rating on deep shots ranks 6th in the NFL.
Don’t get me wrong, though, it was Murray’s legs that made him a difference maker, just like last year’s MVP Lamar Jackson.
Murray’s 604 rushing yards are just 73 behind all Seattle Seahawks running backs combined: 677 rushing yards. The QB’s 10 quick touchdowns are more than what Seattle has as a team (9).
The Cardinals sophomore QB has been powerful in the race when games fail and when coach Kliff Kingsbury calls his number. On designed QB tracks, Murray has the most rushing yards in the NFL (142), tied for second most touchdowns (2) and third in rushes (22) and first downs (9 ). Murray also leads the NFL with 6 quick touchdowns and 14 first downs on option-read tracks, per Pro Football Focus.
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