Next Man Up: Keim, Kingsbury Approach Kyler Conundrum With Caution
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INDIANAPOLIS -- Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray is known for his evasion in the pocket, stretching plays for precious time as a passer that often leads to highlight-worthy moments.
What might be even more impressive was the evasion of questions surrounding Murray and his recent contract drama at the NFL Scouting Combine by Cardinals general manager Steve Keim and head coach Kliff Kingsbury.
Just a day removed from a Murray's agent presenting a controversial statement to the public (which you can read about here), Keim and Kingsbury were set to take the podium to speak to reporters on Tuesday.
Great timing by Murray's agent Erik Burkhardt, right?
The pressure now deflected to Cardinals brass, but they stayed true to their guns and avoided any potential for the public to turn their relationship toxic, at least to levels that would reach social media.
Kingsbury was the first to speak in Indianapolis, and fielded the majority of questions about Murray.
"We understand it’s a business and he’s doing his job,” Kingsbury said of Burkhardt.
“I think our long-term goal here is to have Kyler be our quarterback. He understands that, he understands my view of him and how I feel about him. Once again, I’m gonna refer to the business side of things. That’s not something I deal with, but it’s all part of the business right now and things we’ll continue to work through.”
Kingsbury and Murray have long been tied together, going back to Kingsbury recruiting Murray as a high-school quarterback. The two hope to continue their partnership well into the future.
"I do consistently, we're in a great place," said Kingsbury when asked if he's kept up with Murray in the offseason. "I just haven't talked to him since yesterday."
After finishing his third season under center, criticism surrounding Murray's leadership and maturity have taken on a life of its own. The playoff loss to the Rams put Murray in a spotlight, one he didn't wish to embrace.
When asked his reactions to remarks on Murray's body language and overall leadership, Kingsbury offered this:
"Yeah, I mean, a lot of those are unnamed sources. I don't put a lot of stock into those things," said Kingsbury.
"But our deal (was) we came together. I was a college coach, he was a rookie quarterback (who) started from Day 1. We've both tried to get better in a lot of areas over the last three years. And I feel like we have, there's a lot of room to go. If you look at every area, whether it's leadership, preparation, statistics, wins, he's improved dramatically. That's all I see and that's all I can really comment on."
Keim offered a different perspective as a general manager when he took the podium, or at least he used better analogies.
"I think again since the day that he came in – and I'll say this about our head coach, as well, we were all sort of drinking water through a firehose, trying to get this thing right," Keim said.
"It's taken a lot of work. And to both of their credits, they've done a great job, in my opinion, of actually growing, and growing and looking back at the mistakes that they made. And I think both of them will continue to grow in the right direction and we’ll continue to have success moving forward."
Murray is now eligible for an extension after completing his third season. Keim expanded on what the thought process is behind curating a long-term deal.
"I think it has a lot to do with what your current roster makeup is, because everybody has different situations," he said. "Everybody has different areas where how much cap room they have to clean up, how much room they actually have. Some teams have a lot of room. Generally, those teams didn't have a very good record as we know.
"So the fact that we won 11 games we'll be able to make some moves. But again, as you go into it, how you structure certain contracts, how you defer money, how you play with the cap. There's a number of things that go into it that do take time, and certainly the manpower to look into the analytical side of it on the areas where you've improved."
Keim also admitted that communication is key, especially with a franchise player such as Murray.
"We have a lot of dialogue and the thing I respect about him is he's very open and honest back. He's not a guy that hides things. He's straightforward," said Keim.
There was an obvious sense of annoyance with each question centered around Murray from both Keim and Kingsbury.
Could you blame them? Absolutely not, thanks to Murray's agent pinning them in a corner with a statement for the ages. However, it was also clear Burkhardt was expressing Murray's thoughts about the situation.
It would be a lose-lose for either to comment on the status of Murray, at least in a negative light. Keim and Kingsbury are obviously upset with the entire situation, but did their best to hurdle over each question presented.
It looks like the prospects weren't the only ones going through workouts this week, at least with the verbal gymnastics displayed by Keim and Kingsbury.
Perhaps we'll see them run a 40-yard dash at some point. Perhaps against Rich Eisen of NFL Network.
