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If you were trying to make a case for greatness at the quarterback position, you could do a whole lot worse than what Kyler Murray achieved in the final minutes of the first half Sunday against Pittsburgh.
His defense had just stopped the Steelers on fourth down at the 1-yard line. Tied at 3-3 in a game so miserable it slogged through two separate weather delays, the Cardinals could have gone through the motions — run, run, incomplete pass, punt — and no one would have done more than shrug and say, “Yeah, that’s about right.”
Instead, Murray smoothly guided his team through a 15-play, 99-yard touchdown drive that gave Arizona a lead it would never relinquish. Murray may not have ensured himself a 2024 job with that drive, but he certainly helped bolster his case for staying in Arizona. He kept his foot on the gas and allowed Arizona to get past Pittsburgh, 24-10, for the Cardinals’ third win of the year.
Murray is now 2-2 after returning from an 11-month rehab for a torn ACL, and while he hasn’t been particularly impressive statistically — he threw 13 completions for just 145 yards and a touchdown on Sunday — he’s starting to exhibit the leadership that a young team needs out of the quarterback position, one way or another. In particular, he seems to have found a comfortable target in second-year tight end Trey McBride, who caught eight passes for 89 yards and a touchdown. (Don’t match McBride’s numbers to Murray’s if you favor a balanced, wide-receiver-oriented offensive attack.)
“Every time I touch the field I expect to win,” Murray said after Sunday’s game. “Still frustrated with the two losses [with] me playing in … but this is still technically preseason for me. It’s starting to slow down for me, I’m starting to get more comfortable out there.”
Much of the offseason talk around the Cardinals centered on possibly cutting Murray loose, one way or another, and cashing in on a quarterback-rich draft. But that’s a whole lot…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/is-kyler-murray-playing-himself-into–or-out-of–arizonas-2024-plans-232133732.html
Author : Yahoo Sports
Publish date : 2023-12-06 23:21:33
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