Kyler Murray still is rehabilitating his surgically rebuilt knee. One teammate said the Arizona quarterback also needs to work on his maturity.
Kelvin Beachum, who as a right tackle helped keep Murray clean, offered this assessment during a radio interview earlier in the week. Basically, Beachum said Kyler Murray’s maturity is “not a completed process.”
“I didn’t say he lacks leadership,” Beachum told Arizona Sports. “I just think he needs to grow up a little bit. (And) I think if he has the ability and willingness to grow up, he’s going to be just fine. They paid him for a reason, they paid him because of his talent. He has the ability to lead. When you’re in that position, we need you to lead more. You’re the face of the franchise . . . you have to lead in every single capacity.”
As Beachum said, Murray signed a new contract. This was last year when the Cardinals and Murray agreed to a five-year deal worth $230 million, with $160 million guaranteed. At $39 million a year, he’s the fifth-highest-paid NFL QB coming into 2023. With that much money comes higher expectations. But Murray and then-coach Kliff Kingsbury still butted heads very publicly. Then Murray tore his ACL in December.
It’s unclear when Murray will be able to return to play at full speed. Meanwhile, he also has to deal with new coach Jonathan Gannon, the former defensive coordinator with the Eagles. The 40-year-old Gannon hired two 35-year-old coordinators. According to ESPN Stats & Information, the Cardinals are the only team in the NFL with a head coach and the two main coordinators all 40 or younger.
Murray has a reputation for being difficult. Terry Bradshaw, the Hall of Famer and FOX Sports analyst, said last month that Sean Payton didn’t want to coach the Cardinals because of Murray. (Payton later disputed the statement). Conversely, Gannon said Murray is the reason he took the job.
“If Kyler Murray isn’t here, I don’t take this job,” Gannon told ProFootballTalk’s Peter King. “I think this offense will look much different. This guy does things that it completely handcuffs you how you play defense—at times. I think we can take him to another level and unleash his full skill set.”
Murray remains one of the most fun players to watch in the league. He played in 11 games in 2022 before he was injured. Murray, the top pick of the 2019 draft, probably does need to work on his maturity/leadership as he rehabs. That brings us back to Beachum, who will be a free agent starting next week.
“Kyler is his own individual, he’s his own person, he beats to his own drum, which has made him what he is today,” Beachum said. “But, at the end of the day, you have to be able to lead an entire organization, you’ve got to lead a team.”