NFL.com: Expect Kyler Murray to get rid of ball quicker going forward
Sep 13, 2019, 7:27 AM
Quarterback Kyler Murray #1 of the Arizona Cardinals scrambles with the football during the second half of the NFL game against the Detroit Lions at State Farm Stadium on September 08, 2019 in Glendale, Arizona. The Lions and Cardinals tied 27-27. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
There was a lot that didn’t go right for the Arizona Cardinals and rookie quarterback Kyler Murray on offense in a Week 1 tie against the Detroit Lions.
One of the main problems was the consistent pressure Murray was under and the Air Raid not speeding things up until later in the game.
This was directly represented by Murray taking an average of 2.84 seconds to make a throw, the 10th slowest time among all quarterbacks in Week 1.
NFL.com’s Cynthia Frelund wrote this is not something that should become a trend, namely because of how much more he was able to stay in the pocket later in the game.
In the first three quarters of Arizona’s tie with Detroit, Murray averaged 3.11 seconds from snap to throw. In the fourth quarter and overtime, this sped up to 2.61 seconds, and it projects to keep getting quicker. In the first three quarters, Murray scrambled for 8.8 yards per passing attempt and in the fourth quarter plus overtime he only averaged 5.5 scramble yards per attempt.
As expected with a rookie quarterback and the dynamics of Kliff Kingsbury’s offense, the Cardinals are going to thrive off short completions at an accelerated pace.
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Take away three deep completions to David Johnson (27 yards) and Larry Fitzgerald (41 and 45 yards) and Murray averaged 7.4 yards per completion. And even with those three catches, Murray’s 10.6 yards per completion tied for 20th through the first slate of games. That’s notable with Murray completing the sixth-most passes of all Week 1 quarterbacks, a theme that should continue.
Frelund cites the inexperience of both Murray and Kingsbury as a factor as well.
In-game, we’ve already seen the seeds of this slow time to throw changing, and my model strongly indicates this number will continue to decrease as Murray takes more snaps and first-year coach Kliff Kingsbury calls more plays that are designed to get the ball out more quickly, with both quarterback and coach adjusting to the learning curve of life in the NFL.
Murray and the Cardinals offense will look to speed things up on Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens. Kickoff is set for 10 a.m. on 98.7 FM Arizona’s Sports Station.
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