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Oklahoma football: Top 5 Sooners in the NFL in 2020

By John Makuch

Apr 26, 2018; Arlington, TX, USA; NFL commissioner commissioner Roger Goodell walks off stage as Baker Mayfield is selected as the number one overall pick to the Cleveland Browns in the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 26, 2018; Arlington, TX, USA; NFL commissioner commissioner Roger Goodell walks off stage as Baker Mayfield is selected as the number one overall pick to the Cleveland Browns in the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports /
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Cardinals’ Kyler Murray (1) scrambles away from Bills’ Mario Addison (97) during the first half at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz. on Nov. 15, 2020.Buffalo Bills Vs Arizona Cardinals
Cardinals’ Kyler Murray (1) scrambles away from Bills’ Mario Addison (97) during the first half at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz. on Nov. 15, 2020.Buffalo Bills Vs Arizona Cardinals /

2. Kyler Murray, Arizona Cardinals quarterback

The former Oklahoma Heisman Trophy winner in 2018 took a great step towards stardom in 2020. For a good part of the season, Kyler Murray was in MVP talks before he hit a bit of a wall that took him out of the conversation.

The Cardinals may have finished just outside of the postseason, but that is no reason to take anything away from how special Murray was in 2020.

Finishing with 3,971 passing yards, along with 26 touchdowns, are improvements compared with 2019, while his interceptions remained the same at12. Murray was much more comfortable with an improved Cardinals offense and another year in coach Kliff Kingsbury’s offense.

Murray has also proven to be a major threat in the ground game as well, finishing with 819 yards on the ground and 11 touchdowns in an impressive sophomore NFL season. Avoiding the sophomore slump is something that not many quarterbacks are successful at.

Adding one of the best receivers in the NFL in Deandre Hopkins also helps quite a bit in boosting your production, but great quarterbacks like Murray will capitalize off of these additions and the former Oklahoma superstar, did plenty of that in 2020.

The biggest highlight play for Murray all season was an unforgettable  hail Mary game-winning pass to Hopkins on the final play of the game against the Buffalo Bills. This young Cardinals team will only continue to get better, and so will Murray as the future is brighter than many teams in the league with their current situation.

Expectations were high for Arizona, and Murray did all he could to help the team reach these expectations, but they ended up coming short missing out on the postseason after Murray suffered an injury in a game with the Los Angeles Rams in the final game of the regular season.

Look for Murray to improve even more in 2021, and potentially reach the 4,000 yard mark for the first time in his career as he looks to lead the Cardinals to the postseason.

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