HOW many tendies?! Cardinals O-line ate its way through a Diamondbacks game

One Arizona Cardinals offseason narrative: Kyler Murray is showing leadership by taking his teammates out to the ballpark.

A much better offseason narrative: The offensive line can house baskets upon baskets of chicken tenders.

Murray, receiver Greg Dortch and offensive linemen Paris Johnson Jr., Will Hernandez and Hjalte Froholdt got some prime seating in the front row during a May 19 Arizona Diamondbacks win against the Detroit Tigers. While it might’ve stood out that Murray was building camaraderie with his teammates, Froholdt shrugged it off as just a good time. He had a different takeaway.

“We got a boatload of snacks and everything,” he told Bickley & Marotta about the afternoon at Chase Field. “They were just like, ‘Hey, just order whatever you want.’ And Paris decided to order like seven baskets of tenders and like 12 hot dogs and four huge, buttered popcorns. All kinds of stuff. It was like, alright, let’s get after it.

“It was a good time, good time. (They said) ‘Oh wait, How many tendies do you want?'”

"HOW many freakin' tendies do you want?!"

Cardinals center Hjalte Froholdt threw tackle Paris Johnson Jr. under the bus for the amount of chicken tenders Johnson ordered at a Diamondbacks game. pic.twitter.com/WsnfOww8mn

— Arizona Sports (@AZSports) May 30, 2024

Let’s give the other storyline a little consideration, too.

Assuming most of those calories went toward the bulking phase of the linemen and not the speedy Murray or Dortch, Arizona’s offseason is of great importance. It’s Murray’s first summer run under the current offensive staff because he was still rehabbing his ACL tear last offseason.

And considering Arizona sneakily had one of the NFL’s best offenses in the final four weeks of the regular season, how much the group can build some continuity is imperative toward 2024.

“I’m excited to have a bunch of the same guys in the room this year and, you know, being able to work with them and continue to work and hopefully put out a better product,” Froholdt said.

“There’s just more continuity within the whole offensive line. If you don’t know what you’re doing, you’re sticking out like a sore thumb. So it’s like, ‘Hey, pick it up.’ There’s more responsibility and we’re taking more pride in doing exactly what we need to do.”

What up @AZCardinals! 🏜️ #AllAZ pic.twitter.com/492VWsVvoC

— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) May 19, 2024

Is Froholdt buying the leadership narrative shift surrounding Murray?

The center said Murray has impressed since Froholdt landed in Arizona last offseason.

“It was super fun to go to a Diamondbacks game. It didn’t seem, like, fabricated. It was just a natural thing like, ‘Hey, want to go? Sounds like a great time,'” Froholdt said.

“I’ve only been impressed with Kyler since I walked into this building. You never know with media and what people say and all that stuff, we always try to tune it all out. I’ve been nothing but impressed with him.”

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