Hollywood Brown stood at his locker after practice on Wednesday with a glimmer in his eye.
The Cardinals’ best wide receiver was fresh off a frustrating game Sunday, finishing with only four catches for 34 yards against the Rams, but through no fault of his own.
Twice, Brown torched his defender and made a beeline for the end zone.
Twice, quarterback Joshua Dobbs threw woefully inaccurate passes on would-be touchdowns.
But three days later, that was water under the bridge, because his boy was back.
Star quarterback Kyler Murray returned to practice on Wednesday, a significant step in his return from a torn ACL, and with a chip on his shoulder.
“He’s not coming back to be average,” Brown told the assembled media. “He’s coming back to prove a point.”
“He not coming back to just be average. He coming back to prove a point.”
And what’s that point?
“That he’s one of the best quarterbacks in the league.”#AZCardinals WR Hollywood Brown on Kyler Murray, who returned to practice on Wednesday.
-@CraigAZSports pic.twitter.com/NPnJlo7Uuq
— Arizona Cardinals Insiders 🎤🎙 (@AZCardsInsiders) October 18, 2023
Murray and Brown are former college teammates at Oklahoma and great friends. Hollywood asked out of Baltimore last offseason and his preferred destination was Arizona because of Murray.
The on-field chemistry was apparent last season, as Brown caught 43 passes for 485 yards and three touchdowns in the first six games of 2022, an average of 80.8 yards per game, before injuries sidelined him and then Murray.
Now they are ready to rev it up again, but one important caveat looms — Brown has to be here in order for that to happen.
Top 2 not 2. @K1 x @Primetime_jet 🌟🚀 pic.twitter.com/2wl8Rk2eV9
— K1SinceDay1 (@KSzn2021) October 19, 2023
Murray figures to return to action in early November; the NFL trading deadline is on October 31.
Brown has been a popular name bandied about by national analysts, and it makes sense.
The Cardinals are 1-5, he’s on an expiring deal, and the talent is unquestioned. Teams looking to bolster their passing game would receive an immediate jolt with the addition of Brown, while the Cardinals could shed salary and pick up a draft pick.
But they shouldn’t do it.
Brown has proven to be an ideal fit in offensive coordinator Drew Petzing’s scheme.
He consistently wins his 1-on-1 battles, giving Dobbs an open target. He can be used on end arounds and other trickeration near the line of scrimmage, which keeps defenses on their toes.
And even when he doesn’t get the ball, a deep route by Brown is going to hold the attention of a safety, clearing out the underneath for his fellow route-runners.
S e p a r a t i o n 🌪️
— Hollywood Brown (@Primetime_jet) October 16, 2023
Brown is valuable, which means the Cardinals are going to need to pay up to keep him. But unless there is outsized worry about an injury-prone foot, he is exactly the type of guy that deserves an extension.
He is 26 years old, has the pedigree of a former first-round pick, has blinding speed and great chemistry with the franchise quarterback.
The Cardinals could deal him and get the pick and extra cap space, but that would really take the wind out of their sails for the rest of 2023, leaving Murray to work with a very below average group of pass-catchers upon his return.
And then it would leave a sizable hole at wide receiver heading into the offseason, where you’d have to get really aggressive to outbid others for a guy like Tee Higgins, if he even makes it to free agency.
The draft is always an option, but if the Cardinals can’t get Marvin Harrison, Jr., they would have to weigh selecting a wide receiver in the first round against filling the other myriad holes on the roster.
Brown isn’t an elite No. 1 receiver like Justin Jefferson, Ja’Marr Chase or Tyreek Hill, but he’s a very good player who brings immense value to an offense that is predicated on taking shots.
While he is the Cardinals’ best trade chip over the next 12 days, their best move would be keeping him around for years to come.
