Deion Sanders and Bo Jackson both have done it. Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray thinks he can, too.
A two-sport athlete at the University of Oklahoma, Murray told the Arizona Republic he thinks he can play in both Major League Baseball and the NFL at the same time.
“Athletically, I think, yeah, I could do it,” said Murray, who was a top-10 pick in each of the respective drafts. “I’ve been playing both my whole life. I would love to add that to the résumé.”
The 2018 Heisman Trophy winner was the Cardinals’ No. 1 pick in the 2019 NFL Draft after he had been selected No. 9 overall by the Oakland Athletics in the 2018 MLB Draft.
Murray ultimately stuck with football and, likely, the financial implications, as he will receive more than $35 million guaranteed through his rookie contract.
The A’s still own Murray’s MLB rights, and while the 22-year-old seems to be fully engaged in his football career, it sounds like he hasn’t closed the door on baseball.
“I don’t understand why in sports they try to marginalize it,” Murray said. “They try to make you pick one and I get it, but we’ll see. I think it would be fun. Right now, though, I’m just focused on football.”
Murray finished his rookie season in Arizona with 3,722 passing yards while throwing for 20 touchdowns.
