Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray is a bright spot on a team lacking quality players. He remains one of the elite dual-threat quarterbacks in the NFL.
But coming off a season in which he didn’t even play in half of Arizona’s games, can Murray still be counted on to deliver fantasy production for fantasy football managers?
Here’s the fantasy outlook for Murray entering the 2024 season.
Kyler Murray’s Fantasy Profile for the 2024 NFL Season
Murray missed the first nine games of the 2023 season, recovering from a torn ACL from the previous season. When he returned to the lineup on Week 10, his production was good but not great.
He averaged 224.9 passing yards per game (YPG), an improvement from the 2022 season before his ACL injury (215.3 YPG) but far below his career-high average in 2021 (270.5 YPG).
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But one of the aspects of his game that made him such a highly-valued quarterback — his ability to run the ball — wasn’t where it used to be after he returned to the lineup last season. His rushing average (30.5 YPG) was down from 2022 (38.0 YPG), and while he still had a solid yards-per-carry average (5.5), his rush attempts per game (5.5) were a career low.
This was more than understandable, considering Murray was returning from an ACL injury. And while his three rushing touchdowns in eight games last season matched his 2022 total in 11 games, it’s still fair to question if his effectiveness running the ball will ever return to its pre-injury days.
Is Murray a Good Fantasy Pick?
Murray is the QB8 in Pro Football Network’s Consensus Fantasy Football Rankings as of Aug. 16.
The Cardinals drafted wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. with the fourth overall pick in last April’s NFL Draft, but they also lost Marquise Brown to the Kansas City Chiefs. So, at this point, that switch looks like a wash in terms of offensive impact.
Arizona still has running back James Conner and drafted Florida State running back Trey Benson in the third round. Of course, that could wind up taking running opportunities away from Murray.
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A healthy Murray remains a quarterback with many offensive attributes. He avoids mistakes, keeping his interception percentage below 2% in each of the last two seasons.
And although his running wasn’t as effective as it had been in previous seasons, considering he has averaged 37.7 rushing YPG for his career, if he is healthy, it’s difficult to believe the Cardinals will not take advantage of that skill set in Murray.
Overall, Murray has averaged 278.4 pass/rush yards per game over his career. Having just turned 27 years old, the best of Murray may be ahead of him.
If you believe Murray will return to being an impactful runner, he seems like a tremendous value for fantasy managers who do not have a shot at a Josh Allen or Jalen Hurts.