DeMarco Murray was traded to the Tennessee Titans on Tuesday, and the team hardly gave up anything to acquire him. Was the asking price the same for the Dallas Cowboys?
Paul Kuharsky of ESPN.com reports that the Titans and Philadelphia Eagles swapped fourth-round picks in the trade for Murray. That means the price for Murray was a mere 13 spots in the fourth round of the upcoming draft. In addition, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports that Murray agreed to rework his contract with Tennessee, and his new deal is worth $12.5 million guaranteed over the next four seasons, with a base value of $25.5 million. The total value of Murray’s contract with the Eagles over the next four seasons would have been $31 million.
Were the Cowboys not willing to pay that?
Various reports have indicated that the Cowboys and Eagles discussed a Murray trade before the 28-year-old was shipped to Tennessee. Murray was reportedly interested in a Dallas reunion, and the fact that the Cowboys discussed it must mean they were at least open to the possibility. Common sense would tell you that the Cowboys would have been willing to swap a few places in the draft if they had any interest at all, so why couldn’t they make it happen?
It’s likely that one of two things happened — either Dallas wanted Murray to take a massive pay cut to return, or the Eagles made their asking price for the Cowboys higher since they’re a division rival. Either scenario makes perfect sense.
We all thought Murray would feel a lot better when Chip Kelly was fired, but we probably should have paid closer attention to that death stare he gave a teammate. He probably would have preferred to go back and rush behind Dallas’ dominant offensive line, but Murray is just happy to be out of Philly.
