Jonathan Gannon: Cardinals QB Kyler Murray is 'Elite'

The hate for Arizona Cardinals QB Kyler Murray has grown to epic proportions. New head coach Jonathan Gannon hopes to put those thoughts to bed.

Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray has been the subject of plenty of negative press for the last year. 

Such is life when you reach some of the accolades he has: Heisman winner, No. 1 overall pick and a fat contract after proving your worth as a franchise quarterback. 

Yet some of the narratives also derive from his passion for gaming, the study clause that was insistently put into his huge extension and the whole offseason drama that came before that. 

It will take quite the amount of success for Murray to silence his critics, but new head coach Jonathan Gannon has a great amount of trust in his new quarterback. 

The talent and ceiling has been flashed from Murray on more than one occasion, yet it wouldn't be the first or last time where a new regime comes to town (not married to the current quarterback) and wants to start fresh again. 

That won't be the case with the Gannon-Murray relationship, which is already off to a strong start:

FIRED UP 🔥 pic.twitter.com/flHpfermpC

— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) February 14, 2023

The first step is finding an offensive coordinator to get Arizona's offense back on track after a dismal 4-13 season. Thus far, four different names have been requested. 

"We’re starting to look at some different candidates and looking at interviewing some people here in the next 48hours. I have a very specific vision of how I want to play on offense, and the person that comes in here to run the offense is going to understand that everything that we do will be structured around the quarterback position to maximize his skillset—and we have an elite one," said Gannon. 

"We also have some elite players at different positions already on the roster that I’m very excited to work with, and that’s what we’re going to do. Just an overall general philosophy of being adaptable, we’re going to maximize Kyler’s skillset."

Gannon previously coached against Murray when the Philadelphia Eagles were able to squeeze out a narrow victory over the Cardinals earlier in the season at State Farm Stadium. 

"Obviously, I played against Kyler this year and it was a unique game plan to put together because of his skillset. I use the term, ‘He’s a problem to defend because of what he can do. He’s a legit problem for defenses. He has a very unique skillset and that’s what I’m looking forward to. Working with him and showing him, ‘Hey, this is how defenses are going to try to stop you. Here’s what you need to be ready for.’ These are the things that we’re going to do with him that’s going to help him move all the way up and down the field, score a bunch of points, be explosive and protect the football. With the off season we’ll put together a plan," said Gannon. 

There's been plenty of discourse on Murray's play, and nobody would have blamed a potential coach for not wanting to take an opportunity with their franchise quarterback recovering from ACL/meniscus surgery. 

Yet it's clear Gannon believes in Murray. For now, that's all that's required. 

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