The Athletic’s Jones: Kyler Murray among those with something to prove in 2023

Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray certainly has his work cut out for him in 2023 following a down year that ended prematurely with a torn ACL.

In addition to bouncing back from his injury, the franchise QB will have a new coaching staff and front office to mesh with.

Those factors are big reasons why The Athletic’s Mike Jones pegged the signal caller as the player to watch for the Cardinals this offseason.

Kliff Kingsbury is gone. Now Murray must show that he is indeed the transcendent player worthy of that first overall pick in 2019 and the five-year, $230 million contract extension he received in 2022 despite having led his team to only one winning season. He’ll be starting over with a first-year head coach (Jonathan Gannon) and offensive coordinator (Drew Petzing).

Murray’s return to action remains shrouded in the unknown as he continues to rehab from the knee injury suffered in a Week 14 loss to the New England Patriots.

Before going down with the knee issue, Murray had completed 66.4% of his passes for 2,368 yards and 14 touchdowns to seven interceptions across 11 games played. He chipped in another 418 yards and three scores on 67 carries.

That hasn’t stopped him from being with the team, though, as seen this past Monday for the start of organized team activities.

After getting some rehab in on the side with the likes of offensive lineman D.J. Humphries and tight end Zach Ertz, Murray stuck around the practice field to take in the OTAs work being put in by his teammates alongside Petzing.

#AZCardinals QB Kyler Murray watching his fellow pass throwers during OTAs on Monday. pic.twitter.com/OiiJbRpN1M

— Tyler Drake (@Tdrake4sports) May 22, 2023

With Murray likely starting the year on the sideline, veteran Colt McCoy could very see his number called in Week 1. Rookie Clayton Tune, David Blough and Jeff Driskel are also in the mix to compete for the job.

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