SB Nations newest 2019 NFL Mock Draft keeps Kyler Murray to the Arizona Cardinals

With the 2019 NFL Draft quickly approaching, 23 days from right now, the Arizona Cardinals sit on the clock and the entire NFL waits.

Do they take Kyler Murray, sending Nick Bosa to the 49ers and let the dominoes fall after that?

Will Kyler Murray be the pick at one but for the Oakland Raiders?

SB Nation’s Dan Kadar released his newest 2019 NFL Mock Draft and he still holds steady with Kyler Murray at the top:

1. Arizona Cardinals: Kyler Murray, QB, Oklahoma

Offseason needs: Interior defensive line, wide receiver, tight end, slot cornerback

How exactly did Murray ascend to being the likely first overall pick in the draft? It goes far beyond his Heisman accolade and superstar athleticism. Murray isn’t the presumed top pick simply because he can run fast, or because he reminds people of some combination of Baker Mayfield, Russell Wilson, and prime Michael Vick. Murray is just a damn good passer.

An advanced stats dive in the Sports Info Solutions Rookie Handbook has Murray rated the highest in six different categories at the position. That includes things like on-target percentage (basically the percent of catchable throws), pass yards per attempt, and plain old passer rating. Pro Football Focus rates Murray the best at completion percent against pressure and second in total adjusted completion percentage. If your eyes don’t tell you Murray is a legit quarterback, the numbers do.

There’s been a number of pieces written in the last several days that have shown that some of the narratives, Murray doesn’t throw short well, he can’t throw from the pocket, are not just bad analysis, they are wrong.

That doesn’t mean I agree with Murray being the pick, it would still not be my first choice.

However, if the questions are about his game, they seem to be answered with what he proved in college.