CARDINALS CORNER
Kyler Murray’s 2-point dime to A.J. Green a standout play for Cardinals QB
TEMPE — Five times over the course of the Arizona Cardinals’ final two fourth-quarter drives in their overtime victory over the Las Vegas Raiders, quarterback Kyler Murray had to rise to the occasion or watch his team fall to 0-2 on the season.
And five out of those five instances, he did just that.
A quick review:
– A 24-yard completion and near-touchdown to wide receiver Hollywood Brown on fourth-and-four with 8:41 left to play.
– The ensuing two-point conversion which saw Murray scramble 85 yards and take more than 20 seconds before finding pay dirt.
– A game-saving scramble on fourth-and-one to move the chains with 2:28 left to go.
– A three-yard touchdown run on fourth down at the end of regulation.
– A seven-yard strike to wide receiver A.J. Green for another good two-point try to force overtime.
Whether it was a pair of two-point tries or three fourth-down attempts, Murray extended the game for Arizona and sent a shock wave through the sideline.
“It just makes you want to go hard,” linebacker Zaven Collins said Wednesday. “I feel bad for the other defense, because I don’t want to be chasing him around for 20 seconds. That’s for damn sure.”
And while everyone is still talking about his mad dash to pick up two points, the signal caller had much more to say on the one he converted through the air to tie things up at 23.
Kyler. Murray. Unreal comeback performance.
📺: #AZvsLV on CBS
📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/FVZamC6mMP pic.twitter.com/mTlkoeLSzq— NFL (@NFL) September 18, 2022
Not only did Murray throw it in the tightest of windows after eating a delay of game penalty, he gave Green a much-needed chance at redemption after a rough outing on the wide receiver’s part.
“A lot of people probably would have snapped that ball (instead of take the penalty),” Murray said. “I’d rather take the delay of game — we didn’t have any timeouts — and get into a play we liked. Even then, the play wasn’t open.
“Just the trust with A.J., he had dropped a couple. … Just to be able to trust him to come back and make the play that we needed to extend the game is pretty crucial.”
For those looking for more reasoning behind the quarterback’s extension, his showing in the fourth quarter of Arizona’s OT win is yet another example.
