Monday’s stunning news that the new contract for Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray contains a homework clause wasn’t the product of randomness or coincidence.
The Cardinals didn’t mandate a weekly commitment to engage in at least four hours of independent study if they believed Murray already was doing that, and then some.
The Cardinals, who made Murray look bad for not studying enough and themselves look worse for paying him that much money even though they think he doesn’t study enough, added that clause because they believed they needed it.
Some have tried to downplay the development. That’s a mistake, a misreading of the circumstances that led to the clause. It’s a huge deal.
It’s an unprecedented acknowledgement by an NFL team that, as it makes a long-term commitment with more than $100 million fully guaranteed at signing to a franchise quarterback, the quarterback needs the possibility of losing all guarantees to get him to do what any true franchise quarterback will do without being told or even asked — study at least four hours per week on his own in advance of the next game.
Personally, I don’t know how much Kyler Murray does or doesn’t study. But I know this. The clause was put in the contract because the Cardinals have reason to believe that, without it, he may not study enough.
