How long will Cardinals’ Kyler Murray be out after tearing his ACL against the Patriots?
The Cardinals were already on shaky ground with a 4-9 record, but the loss of their quarterback for the rest of the season, could just be too much to take.
On Monday night the Arizona Cardinals didn’t just lose a critical game to a in their hunt for a playoff spot, but they also lost their starting quarterback and it goes without saying, that’s not good at all.
Cardinals’ Kyler Murray to miss rest of the season
It’s pretty safe to assume that the Cardinals were hoping to prove a point against the Patriots on Monday night. Under the Bill Belichick’s tutelage, the Pats have been one of the most brutal defenses in the league this season. That’s to say, Arizona was definitely looking to collect a major scalp. Unfortunately, not only did it not go that way, but tragedy struck as well. Just three plays into the game, Cardinals QB Kyler Murray went down without contact. On his first drive of the contest, the former No. 1 pick scrambled briefly before his knee appeared to give way as he took to the turf. It wasn’t long before the signal caller was carted off to locker room and replaced by veteran backup, Colt McCoy. With an MRI on Tuesday now confirming the Cardinals’ worst fears, Murray will sit out the rest of the season having torn his ACL.
Interestingly, the Cardinals initially listed Murray as questionable to return, but one could tell from the way he looked as he was taken away, that it was never likely to be the case. Indeed, it was early in the second quarter when the team finally ruled him out, leaving McCoy to cover the rest of the game. “Obviously it didn’t look good,” coach Kliff Kingsbury said postgame. “I’ve never seen (Murray) in that type of shape, so I assumed it wasn’t good.”
What happens to Kyler Murray and the Cardinals now?
With the severity of Murray’s injury now confirmed, the Cardinals’ star player will now be forced to sit out the remainder of the 2022 campaign and possibly even some of 2023 one as well. Consider, that this is an injury that can typically take anywhere from nine months to twelve for recovery to be complete. Sadder still, is the fact that Murray suffered injuries in each of the four seasons that he’s played in the league so far. Needless to say, this most recent one is by far the most serious, which likely means the team will either have to commit entirely to McCoy or seek reinforcements when the opportunity arises.
Kyler Murray’s injury is problematic in more ways than one
As with most things, context is important. Now 25-years-old, Murray is fresh off of putting pen to paper on a five-year, $230.5 million contract extension which effectively ties him to Arizona until 2028. Those numbers are made all the more curious, when we consider that he’s actively courted controversy for most of this year. From openly battling with the front office prior to the finalization of his deal, to having a go at reporters for covering certain clauses in his contract and let’s not forget when he criticized head coach Kliff Kingsbury’s offensive scheme. Of course, Murray himself has been heavily criticized for his role or lack thereof in the team’s 4-9 start. No matter how you cut it, things haven’t been ‘rozy’ between the Cardinals and their signal caller.