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By Michael Burgess II
Cronkite News
TEMPE – With a deal yet to be signed, quarterback Kyler Murray’s future with the Arizona Cardinals remains an issue of concern for many fans.
For players in the building, however, they have no doubt that Murray will be with the franchise for years to come.
“I say that again,” left tackle D.J. Humphries said to the media on Monday. “If you think he’s not our future, you need to slow down on the drinking in the daytime.”
Murray has two years left on his contract and is slated to make about $5.5 million this year. Many speculated that tensions may have been growing between the 2019 first overall pick and the Cardinals over contract negotiations.
General manager Steve Keim said he is not worried about where relations between the two parties stand and remains committed to making sure that the franchise retains Murray’s services for the long-term.
“I wanted to get through the draft process, free agency, all the work we put into it,” Keim said on The Rich Eisen Show in May. “And now we can take a step back, refocus, and see if we can get something done. Everything’s been good. The communication’s been open with him (Murray) and Erik Burkhardt, his agent. Hopefully, we’ll be able to get something nailed down before the season starts.”
In February, Burkhardt released a statement regarding Murray’s contract extension, saying that Murray “absolutely wants to be (the) long term QB” and “desperately wants to win the Super Bowl”. However, to achieve that, Murray believes that “there needs to be long term stability for both the organization and himself.”
Humphries, who has been with the Cardinals since they selected him 24th overall in the 2015 NFL Draft, knows what the team looked like before Murray got there. He believes that with the franchise quarterback at the helm, no team is unbeatable.
“You watched those games the year before he came,” Humphries said. “His rookie year was rough as well, but we went into those games like, ‘They got to show us before we leave here that they are better than us.’ We didn’t perceive it because we knew what we had in the backfield. We know if we got (Murray) back there, we got a chance.”
The third week of voluntary organized team activities (OTAs) started Monday, and Murray was not present after attending OTAs last Wednesday. However, coach Kliff Kingsbury isn’t worried about where things stand.
“We’ve had great communication,” Kingsbury said. “Like I said all along, it’s voluntary. Guys train in different ways, so we knew that coming into the week.”
The Cardinals are in their third and final OTA session. Mandatory minicamp will start June 14.
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