Beachum: Cardinals QB Kyler Murray has ‘taken the bull by the horns’

Not that long ago, Arizona Cardinals veteran offensive lineman Kelvin Beachum made waves for his comments surrounding quarterback Kyler Murray.

As he told Arizona Sports’ Burns & Gambo in March of last year, in order for Murray to be great, he had “to be a man and grow up.”

Just over a year later, Beachum is seeing much more from Arizona’s franchise signal caller.

“As it pertains to him continuing to mature as a quarterback, I think that is accurate. He’s continuing to mature and he’s continuing to be what we all know he can be in this particular system and for this particular franchise,” Beachum told Arizona Sports’ Cardinals Corner podcast on Tuesday.

“You can tell there’s a certain level of swag that’s starting to come back into his game and there’s a level of intimacy in the system that you want to see from your quarterback,” the veteran lineman added. “I would say he’s taken the bull by the horns and really has found a way to entrench himself in this offense and understand this offense in an intimate manner. I think that bodes well for us as a team.”

Beachum is far from the only one seeing a change in Murray’s approach.

This offseason was a big one for Murray, who was not only fully healthy, but also taking it upon himself to grow closer with his teammates.

Footing the bill for an offseason trip to Los Angeles, Murray and 12 offensive playmakers got that much closer through on-the-field work and the camaraderie that came off of it. It’s exactly the example many following the team needed to see out of Arizona’s franchise signal caller ahead of Year 6.

So, what’s changed?

Yes, Murray is a year older and isn’t that far removed from battling his way back from a torn ACL in 2022 and the extensive recovery that followed. Those factors alone can give someone a new scope on life.

But there’s also the fact that he’s much more aligned with the philosophy and overall approach the new regime has implemented since head coach Jonathan Gannon and general manager Monti Ossenfort came to town. He said so himself during training camp, acknowledging he’s on the “same page” as the franchise’s decisionmakers.

Those factors along with Murray’s added comfortability within the offense and the weapons around him played big roles in getting the QB to where he is today.

“I think this system is allowing him to thrive and do the things that he does very, very well and being able to put that on display,” Beachum said on his QB. “I think the organization has done a really good job surrounding him with pieces — (Michael Wilson, Marvin Harrison Jr., James Conner, Trey Benson, Greg Dortch).

“You got an offensive line that’s done a superb job keeping him upright. Now, we gotta do that consistently throughout the year, especially with the way in which we’ve been running the ball and ran the ball last year and being able to take some of those good things into this year.”

Remember, a lot can change in a year, especially when players and the front office are in lockstep.

Follow @Tdrake4sports