Former Washington Huskies star Byron Murphy is certainly not a household name, but he has quietly established himself as one of the elite cornerbacks in the NFL.
Murphy has spent the last couple of seasons with the Minnesota Vikings and is coming off of a masterful 2024 campaign in which he racked up 81 tackles, six interceptions and 14 passes defended en route to his first Pro Bowl appearance. Just in time for free agency.
Still, in spite of Murphy's brilliant season, he is still not being viewed by most as one of the very top cornerbacks on the open market, with both Charvarius Ward and D.J. Reed generating more hype than the Washington product.
However, NFL teams may not exactly feel the same, which is why Spotrac is projecting Murphy to land a massive contract worth $22.1 million annually this offseason. More specifically, he is being predicting to bag a four-year, $88.4 million deal.
That's a whole lot of money for someone who is hardly even being discussed, but you know what? Murphy would be worth every penny.
The 27-year-old was clearly one of the best players at his position this past year, and he is two years younger than both Ward and Reed. The only potential downside for Murphy is that this is a very deep cornerback class in free agency, which may hurt his financial earnings.
That being said, any team in dire need of a lockdown corner should absolutely be willing to break the bank for Murphy, who still appears to be an ascending player heading into 2025.