Cardinals QB Kyler Murray posted a top 5 fantasy line among Week 5 QBs, with the Sunday night and Monday night games yet to go. He ran for 83 yards on 7 carries, including a 50-yard TD scamper. Murray added 195 yards and a TD passing, with 1 INT and a sack taken.
2024 Fantasy Football Impact
We'll take the strong fantasy outing in a surprising win at San Francisco. But this marked Murray's third game (among five) with less than 200 yards passing. He has thrown just 1 TD pass in four of five.
He also has just the one rushing score. And Sunday marked just the second time Murray has reached 20 fantasy points in a game this year (depending on your scoring format).
Murray did enter Week 5 with his highest Pro Football Focus passing grade since 2021, ranking 10th among qualifying QBs. He also brought a career-high 9.2-yard average target depth.
All of that could mean Murray's en route to settling into stronger fantasy production as he gets comfier with his receivers and a coaching staff that arrived last year (when Murray missed the season's first half). Or perhaps he's destined to average fantasy scores on the starter fringe for 12-team leagues.
Next week sends Murray to Green Bay to face a middling defense. Then comes a Week 7 home date with the Chargers, who entered Week 5 as the No. 3 defense in total DVOA and No. 2 against the pass.
Expect Murray to land among our top 12 QBs for Week 6. We'll see beyond that.