With offensive guru Kliff Kingsbury taking the reins as Arizona head coach, Murray should start immediately for the Cardinals. While the NFL’s worst offence of a year ago may struggle once again, the Cardinals must feel satisfied they have found their quarterback of the future.
Given Kingsbury’s reputation for developing young dynamic quarterbacks and Murray’s athletic skill set, the union of head coach and quarterback appears on paper at least, a perfect match.
NFL Draft 2019: First Round
Show all 33
How much of an impact will the first year head coach and rookie quarterback make? Having won just three games in 2018, bookmakers have Arizona at over under 5.5 wins in 2019. While the Cardinals may not turn into playoff contenders in year one, Murray’s potential can have Arizona fans feeling optimistic about the future going forward.
With the Giants taking Daniel Jones sixth overall, the Redskins bided their time ultimately claiming a bargain at pick fifteen with the selection of Ohio State quarterback Dwayne Haskins.
With Alex Smith likely to miss a great deal and potentially all of the 2019 season, it will be interesting to see how Washington handles Haskins. With Colt McCoy and Case Keenum the only alternatives, impatient fans may want to see Haskins start early in the season.
Haskins is a dynamic playmaker with many rating the Ohio State selection the second best quarterback prospect in the draft behind Kyler Murray. Haskins will start for the Redskins at some stage during the upcoming season, most likely in the second half.
Washington finished with seven wins in 2018 and with or without Haskins at quarterback bookmakers expect the Redskins to be around the same mark next season with the win loss total set at 6.5 wins.
Dwayne Haskins shone in his sole season as a starter at Ohio State (Getty Images)
The Giants caused the biggest stir of the 2019 NFL Draft when they took Duke quarterback Daniel Jones early in the opening round. While most pundits believed the Giants could have taken Jones later in the first round (with their 17th pick overall), given the looming retirement of Eli Manning, the Giants snatched the player they believe to be their next franchise quarterback with the sixth overall selection.
The Giants will be conservative in their approach and will not look to throw Jones to the wolves too early but rather allow him to hone his craft behind the astute Manning. But if Manning struggles once again, pressure will mount on the coaching staff to make a change. Given the consternation among Giants fans upon the drafting of Jones, many will be eager to have a look at the prospect sooner rather than later.
The Giants finished with five wins in 2018 and bookmakers do not see the squad improving much in the coming season. Jones or not, the Giants win total over under for the upcoming season is set at 5.5.
The Giants have been criticised for picking Daniel Jones (AP)
While the Broncos acquired aging former Baltimore quarterback Joe Flacco in the offseason, they waited until the second round of the NFL Draft to claim their quarterback of the future, Missouri product Drew Lock.
Lock is a tall strong armed athletic quarterback with elusive pace and all the tools a team could desire in a potential franchise quarterback. Given Flacco’s aging body, the fact he managed just nine games last season not to mention his hefty contract, the Broncos will be keen to see what Lock can do given they can cut Flacco next offseason with little impact upon their salary cap.
While we rank Lock fourth on our list, it would not be a surprise to see Lock competing among the elite NFL quarterbacks within four or five seasons. The Broncos will look to get the last of whatever Joe Flacco has left in the tank. But if Flacco struggles through injury, Broncos fans could get a look at their quarterback in waiting earlier than expected.
Denver won six games in 2018 with bookmakers expecting much the same in 2019 with the win total set at 7 wins.
Improve your betting with tips from over 450,000 experts at www.bettingexpert.com 18+ please gamble responsibly
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies