Cardinals OC discusses how QB Kyler Murray 'gets better every day'

Arizona Cardinals offensive coordinator Drew Petzing believes the best is yet to come from quarterback Kyler Murray.

"He's the type of guy that gets better every day," Petzing said, per Michael Baca of the NFL's website. "Sometimes, it's physically. Sometimes, it's mentally. Sometimes, it's a leadership perspective. But when you take the job and the sport as seriously as he does, I think you're always going to see that growth. I think it's something where he's always looking to be a better player, be a better teammate, be a better leader. So the more opportunities he gets to do it, the more he learns from it, just like we do as coaches. I think you saw that throughout the spring."

Murray spent this offseason working with Petzing and head coach Jonathan Gannon recovering from a serious knee injury he suffered in December 2022. The 26-year-old ultimately returned to action this past November and completed 65.7 percent of 268 passes for 1,799 yards with 10 touchdowns and five interceptions across eight starts. He also rushed for 244 yards and three scores.

The Cardinals selected Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. with the fourth overall pick of this year's draft. Petzing indicated he doesn't want Murray to feel any stress about targeting Harrison early and often, beginning with Arizona's Week 1 game at the Buffalo Bills on Sept. 8.

"I said this to Kyler, actually I was joking, cause sometimes the quarterback can feel that pressure — 'Oh, I gotta get this guy the ball' — that's not your job, that's my job," Petzing explained. "As a coach, we can dictate some of that and will try to. Your job is to play the play. Whatever the look is, go where the ball needs to go, make the decision that needs to be made — don't worry about that stuff. I think, based on the character of the guys that we kind of talked about in this room, I don't really worry about that."

As of Friday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook had the Cardinals at +270 betting odds to win over 8.5 games this coming season. Questions about Murray's long-term future in Arizona will likely hover over the organization next winter if he fails to guide the club to at least a winning record in his sixth pro campaign.