After a little bit of uncertainty over whether he would wind up choosing the Oakland Athletics’ farm system instead of an immediate shot at the NFL, Oklahoma QB and Heisman winner Kyler Murray has picked football over baseball and will enter the NFL draft, as reported by Murray himself in this refreshingly blunt tweet:
Murray is taking the expected route, avoiding the minor leagues and receiving more guaranteed money with a rookie NFL contract (as long as he’s drafted in the first round) than he would from the $4.66 million A’s signing bonus he’ll have to return. The typical mock draft currently has Murray going in the mid-to-late first round, as the QB has undeniable talent but also is remarkably undersized at a listed 5-foot-10, 195 pounds.
Technically, Murray still has 72 hours to change his mind, pull out of the draft and return to the A’s, but it sure seems like the battle is lost for Oakland. Or who knows, maybe Murray’ll end up around the Bay Area anyway next year, playing for Jon Gruden.