Current:Home > Contact'Special talent': Kyler Murray's Cardinals teammates excited to have him back vs. Falcons -FinanceMind
'Special talent': Kyler Murray's Cardinals teammates excited to have him back vs. Falcons
View
Date:2025-04-23 11:37:34
Quarterback Kyler Murray will start Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons, Arizona Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon announced Friday.
His teammates welcomed the news, which comes with word that starting running back James Conner also could return from injury for Sunday's game at State Farm Stadium.
Murray's return had been expected throughout the week, especially after he was activated and added to the 53-man roster.
He will return to the field in a game for the first time in 11 months. He tore an ACL early in a game against the New England Patriots last December and had to be carted off the field, then had surgery a few weeks later. He had been rehabbing and then practicing with the Cardinals ever since.
"I'm honestly excited for the guy. I've seen what he's had to go through the last, you know, eight months or so, however long I've been here," Gannon said. "And you know, what he's put into it and how bad he wants to be out there and the competitor that he is, he wants to be out there with the guys and help his team win. So that's what I'm most excited to see."
NFL STATS CENTRAL: The latest NFL scores, schedules, odds, stats and more.
Murray's teammates are excited about his return. His competitive desire to win permeates the locker room.
"Anytime you can have your number one quarterback play in this league, of course, that's definitely something special," said Cardinals safety Budda Baker, like Murray a team captain. "He is a special talent and a special guy who can do anything a quarterback can do, run inside the pocket, outside the pocket, throw."
Tight end Trey McBride said the return of Murray is a "huge asset" for the Cardinals. McBride figures to be on the other end of some Murray passes right away, having played with Murray last season before the quarterback got hurt.
"He's exactly what I remember him. He's a freak athlete, he's a guy who makes plays happen and obviously it's a little different with a different quarterback in there, the way he ... rolls around and stuff, but it's been good, I'm excited," McBride said. "The opportunity's gonna be there. He's gonna make some plays happen. Something about Kyler, you know, he makes plays happen when there's not much going on. ... As pass catchers we gotta be ready for scramble drill, for things to happen after the play (breaks down), things like that."
Rookie wide receiver Michael Wilson is hoping to play this week after missing last week's game with a shoulder injury. He said the receivers have to help Murray, and that he can relate to the first game back from a long-term injury.
Wilson said Murray has a zing on his throws that not all quarterbacks have.
"Obviously, he's the leader of our franchise and so I feel like there's a different feel when he's commanding the offense, a different type of leadership that is present," Wilson said of Murray. "Sort of like that star power when he's commanding the offense."
And then there is wide receiver Marquise 'Hollywood' Brown," Murray's close friend and former college teammate at Oklahoma now in his second season with the Cardinals.
"It's like he never left, for me," Brown said. "And I know the competitor he is, you know, you hear a lot of the bad talk, this and that, but he's a competitor and he's hungry to go out there and play."
Conner nears return
Conner was limited in practice all week after four games missed on injured reserve with a knee injury, but he has a chance to play Sunday.
Conner is "trending in the right direction," Gannon said.
"He's our workhorse in the run game. So it'd be good to get him back and it helps not only Kyler, it helps our team," Gannon added.
Conner is questionable to play Sunday, and there remains a chance that two injured starters on the offensive line, left tackle D.J. Humphries and right guard Will Hernandez, could play a week after getting hurt. They might be game-time decisions, Gannon said, though neither practiced Wednesday or Thursday and Humphries missed Friday as well.
Both are listed as questionable.
Tight end Geoff Swaim (back) and linebacker Zeke Turner (hamstring) are also questionable. Turner, a special teams core player, didn't practice all week.
veryGood! (39)
Related
- Taylor Swift Eras Archive site launches on singer's 35th birthday. What is it?
- Watch as the 1,064-HP 2025 Chevy Corvette ZR1 rips to 205 MPH
- Usher postpones more concerts following an injury. What does that mean for his tour?
- Hurricane Ernesto barrels toward Bermuda as wealthy British territory preps for storm
- All That You Wanted to Know About She’s All That
- A look at college presidents who have resigned under pressure over their handling of Gaza protests
- Evers’ transportation secretary will resign in September to take job at UW-Madison
- 14-year-old Alabama high school football player collapses, dies at practice
- Tarte Shape Tape Concealer Sells Once Every 4 Seconds: Get 50% Off Before It's Gone
- Beyond ‘childless cat ladies,’ JD Vance has long been on a quest to encourage more births
Ranking
- See you latte: Starbucks plans to cut 30% of its menu
- College Football Playoff ranking release schedule: Dates, times for 2024 season
- Why Jana Duggar Says It Was “Disheartening” Watching Her Siblings Getting Married First
- How Ferguson elevated the profile of the Justice Department’s civil rights enforcers
- Bodycam footage shows high
- Eagles top Patriots in preseason: Tanner McKee leads win, pushing Kenny Pickett as backup QB
- 19 Kids and Counting's Jana Duggar Marries Stephen Wissmann in Arkansas Wedding
- Newlyweds and bride’s mother killed in crash after semitruck overturns in Colorado
Recommendation
Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow owns a $3 million Batmobile Tumbler
Peter Marshall, 'Hollywood Squares' host, dies at 98 of kidney failure
Ohio deputy fired more than a year after being charged with rape
Thousands of Disaster Survivors Urge the Department of Justice to Investigate Fossil Fuel Companies for Climate Crimes
Sarah J. Maas books explained: How to read 'ACOTAR,' 'Throne of Glass' in order.
Honolulu mayor vows tougher approach on homelessness
Wrongful death suit against Disney serves as a warning to consumers when clicking ‘I agree’
Man who pulled gun after Burger King worker wouldn’t take drugs for payment gets 143 years in prison