The Arizona Cardinals‘ handling of their starting quarterback position has been a fascinating storyline all season long. While their starting QB Kyler Murray seems close to returning to action, the Cardinals have had quite the journey trying to fill the position thus far this season.
Week 9 provides another new name into the mix, as Cardinals rookie Clayton Tune is in line to make his first start of his NFL career. Let’s take a closer look at the young quarterback and how he got to this point.
Clayton Tune’s Road to the NFL
Tune was born in Plano, Texas, and attended Hebron High School in Carrollton, Texas. During his high school career, Tune had 6,686 passing yards with 66 passing touchdowns, 1,074 rushing yards, and 20 rushing touchdowns.
Tune was a three-star recruit who held six Division 1 offers coming out of high school and opted to attend the University of Houston for college. In his first year at Houston in 2018, Tune appeared in five games and made two starts. Tune began 2019 again as the backup but took over as the starter after D’Eriq King decided to sit out the rest of the season.
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From that point on, Tune would start every game he played at Houston and was the unquestioned starter for the next three seasons once King left for Miami. Tune finished his collegiate career with a record of 25-19 and tallied 11,989 passing yards, 104 touchdown passes, 41 interceptions, and 15 rushing touchdowns.
After leaving Houston, Tune was selected by the Arizona Cardinals in the fifth round at pick 139th overall of the 2023 NFL Draft. To this point in his NFL career, Tune has not seen regular-season action.
Big Opportunity for Cardinals Rookie
Despite not having an opportunity yet through eight games, Tune is presented with a window, even if it is for only one game. The fifth-round pick is tabbed to start today for the Cardinals in their Week 9 matchup with the Cleveland Browns.
The Browns have one of the best defenses in the NFL, and it certainly will be a welcome-to-the-NFL moment for Tune. But if he can go out there and show ability in a tough situation, it could do wonders for his NFL future.
With Murray looking to be close to returning, this may very well be his only opportunity to make a lasting impact, and what he does with this chance could change a lot for not only him but for Arizona’s franchise going forward.
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