Kyler Murray on Monday made the less-than-stunning declaration via his Twitter account that he was going to pursue a career in the NFL instead of playing baseball. He was the No. 9 overall pick by the Oakland A’s in last year’s MLB draft. The 49ers are all set at quarterback, but the declaration could turn up the value of the No. 2 overall pick in this year’s NFL draft.
Murray’s decision to take part in the NFL combine was a strong indicator this decision was on the way. Last week we examined the potential impact of Murray’s combine performance on the 49ers. Their No. 2 overall pick could fetch a hefty return in a trade back with a quarterback-needy team. Any willingness to trade for the Heisman Trophy winner was going to be dampened without the certainty that Murray was going to play football.
Now things could heat up for San Francisco with so many teams in the top 15 possibly selecting quarterbacks. Murray has committed to the NFL. He was sensational by traditional statistical measures in leading the Oklahoma Sooners to a College Football Playoff berth. Football analytics site Pro Football Focus called him a “game-changing player at the quarterback position that can keep plays alive and change the face of an NFL franchise.” His tape is mesmerizing.
San Francisco may not have to wait for a combine performance anymore. Murray’s athleticism will shine in workouts, and his height may or may not wind up being a factor.
What Murray did for the 49ers is expand their options by limiting his own. This year’s quarterback class is not highly touted. Murray is Draft Wire’s No. 47 overall prospect and the No. 2 quarterback behind Ohio State’s Dwayne Haskins.
There’s a very real chance a team becomes enamored enough with one of the top quarterbacks to take a massive swing and trade up to No. 2 to take him. We outlined what those trades might look like. Murray’s unique athleticism could make him an option too enticing to pass up.
The good news for the 49ers is that they don’t have to make any decisions right away. They’ll field phone calls and listen to offers, but they aren’t on the clock until Arizona picks. It’s not out of the realm of possibilities that new Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury selects Murray No. 1 overall, or another team bypasses the 49ers and trades up to No. 1 for the Oklahoma star.
Either way, Murray’s commitment to football has zero bearing on the 49ers as far as their roster is concerned. On the other hand, it generates buzz for this year’s quarterback class with two-and-a-half months to go until the draft. Perhaps the 49ers stand pat and go with the second selection in April. The odds of them doing that dipped just a little bit Monday thanks to Murray.
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