Oklahoma football: Why the doubters are all wrong about Kyler Murray

He has ‘character issues’ because of the way he handled the A’s situation

This one is a current favorite of TV talking heads, mostly because of its subjective nature and the lack of emperical evidence needed to lob such an argument.

Yes, Kyler Murray was drafted by the Oakland A’s in the first round of the 2018 MLB Draft. Yes, he signed a contract with the organization, took their money and appeared to have a commitment to play for them.

There’s just one problem with the way that all worked out. Kyler Murray loves the game of football. It is clearly his first love and playing a full season of it for free at the University of Oklahoma with a four-million-dollar contract on the line is living proof of that.

Murray had no real reason to stick around for his junior year in Norman other than the love of the game. He certainly didn’t have to spend the summer of 2018 sweating and running 7-on-7 drills to prepare for the season.

I know if I was in my early 20s with a million dollars in my pocket I could probably find some more entertaining ways to spend my summer.

Not only does Kyler Murray love football. He is really, really good at it (see above arguments).

Let’s say a company hires you to do a job you kind of like, then you figure out that you can make better money to do the thing you love so much that you devote all of your free time to doing it, what are you going to say? No thanks, I already have a job? I don’t think so.

Kyler Murray didn’t make a business decision (though there’s a good chance he’ll make more money right off the bat as an NFL player). He made a choice to follow his passion and do the thing he loves most in the world.

Let’s not forget that this guy just led the Sooners to the College Football Playoff despite having the worst statistical defense of any team to ever reach the CFP. He took a team on his back and became a locker room leader when Oklahoma football needed one the most.

If all of this sounds familiar, it’s because we heard a lot of the same arguments about Baker Mayfield last year before the draft. Luckily for the Cleveland Browns, the didn’t listen to it, took a chance and so far it’s paying off in a big way. Any smart NFL team would be wise to do the same with Kyler Murray.