Cardinals QB Kyler Murray 'Locked In'

Arizona Cardinals QB Kyler Murray says no other passer in the league is as "locked in" as he is.

Dec 17, 2023; Glendale, Ariz, United States; Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray (1) escapes / Michael Chow / USA TODAY NETWORK

ARIZONA -- You don't have to question the focus of Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray.

There's been jokes and shots from baseball to Call of Duty on the former No. 1 overall pick. Perhaps in the past that was deserved.

Now? Murray's on a mission.

"I don't know if there's another quarterback in the league more locked in than me," Murray told FOX ahead of the 2024 NFL Draft.

Murray was forced out of action for the first half of the 2023 season while he rehabbed a torn ACL and meniscus. Though the Cardinals ultimately finished with a 4-13 record, both sides of the ball have been revamped and Arizona looks to make noise moving forward.

That's the hope with their franchise quarterback locked and loaded, anyways.

"It is definitely a lot more fun to coach him in May than it was getting him in mid-November," Cardinals offensive coordinator Drew Petzing told reporters.

"When we hit the field, it was like, 'Alright, here's the game plan. We got to go play.' Now it's 'Hey, are you taking the right drop? Are your eyes in the right place? Do you feel that play the way we want it to be felt. I think all those conversations can happen now."

Cardinals tight end Trey McBride - who burst on the scene in 2023 - got pretty animated when asked about Murray playing a full season with him:

"I'm fired up for it. The guy's a hard-working guy, he's in here every day, he does the right thing. He sometimes gets a bad rap. But man, that guy works as hard as anybody I know," said McBride.

"I'm so excited to have him at the helm running this program because he's a phenomenal person, a phenomenal leader and obviously a phenomenal athlete. So I'm super excited to have another year with him and to see what we can do because I feel like there was a lot that we left out there last year."

That was echoed by head coach Jonathan Gannon, who has championed his quarterback since first landing in the desert.

"I was just in a quarterback meeting with them. The questions he's asking are really good questions - Drew [Petzing] and his [staff] better be on it. I think him being healthy, one, is a huge step forward. He feels really good where he's at right now and then just taking ownership and command going into year two, and really keep being who he is," said Gannon earlier this offseason.

"I think that he'll continue to do that. But definitely with him being healthy, year two in the system. He's excited. So are we."

With the arrival of wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr., Arizona's offense could take off to new levels.

“Yes, he sent a couple texts. Probably can't share those with you guys, but how about this. How about we just say Kyler was pretty excited," Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort told reporters after they took Harrison in the first round.

"Kyler was pretty fired up.”