National Football League

Arizona Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury has built NFL's most explosive offense around Kyler Murray

Updated Oct. 10, 2021 2:33 p.m. ET

By Bucky Brooks
FOX Sports NFL Analyst

If you were one of the naysayers snickering at the Arizona Cardinals when they opted to hire an offensive guru with a losing record as a college head coach, the joke is on you.

Kliff Kingsbury has figured out how to win, and the NFL is on the verge of becoming his playground.

I know that statement will lead to eye rolls and mumbling from observers who are unable to fathom a former college offensive wizard adapting and dominating the pro game, but the evolution of the Air Raid master has resulted in the Cardinals becoming the only remaining undefeated team in the NFL.

Kyler Murray on Cardinals' 4-0 start: 'We're going to continue focusing on us'

MVP frontrunner Kyler Murray on the Cardinals' 4-0 start: "We're going to continue focusing on us."

The Cardinals have scored at least 30 points in each of their four games. And the offense ranks first in total offense (454.8), third in pass offense (304.0), and sixth in rushing offense (136.5). Most importantly, the team is unbeaten and sitting atop the NFL’s most competitive division.

Considering how the Cardinals have been unable to reach the playoffs since Kingsbury’s arrival in 2019, the team’s turnaround has caught the attention of skeptics around the league.

I will admit to being a hater when it came to assessing the former Texas Tech coach’s chances of succeeding in the NFL after he failed to build a winner in the Big 12 Conference. Why hire a so-called offensive guru who was unable to dominate a conference without elite defenses or premier defenders?

The Air Raid scheme Kingsbury employed featured a number of simplistic play designs and gimmicky concepts that NFL defensive coordinators would figure out by the end of his first year. The hard-core tape junkies would study the Cardinals’ game film to break down the basics of the scheme and the tendencies of the play-caller.

Moreover, they would copy the tactics utilized by defensive play-callers who stymied the system in Years 1 and 2 and implement those strategies to baffle Kingsbury during his third season. The copycat nature of the league forces offensive play-callers to adapt or die in today’s game.

After slogging through an 8-8 campaign in 2020, with the team limping to the finish after a 6-3 start, Kingsbury has added some tools to his toolbox to give his team a better chance of making a run at the postseason.

From upgrading his personnel to tweaking his tactics, Kingsbury has orchestrated an offensive makeover that has made the Cardinals a more dynamic and explosive offense this season.

Starting with the additions of veteran receiver A.J. Green and rookie wideout Rondale Moore, the Cardinals upgraded their lineup with more impact players on the perimeter.

Kyler Murray throws two beautiful TD passes in Cardinals' convincing 37-20 win over Rams

The Cardinals traveled to Los Angeles last Sunday and, led by Kyler Murray's stellar performance, dominated the Rams to take sole possession of first place in the NFC West.

Sure, Green had a checkered injury history that kept him off the field for almost two years and impacted his performance in 2020, but the high-risk, high-reward signing has given Kyler Murray a trusted pass catcher (15 catches for 248 yards and two touchdowns on 24 targets) when opponents take away DeAndre Hopkins with double coverage.

Moore has given Arizona a dynamic catch-and-run specialist with speed and wiggle to utilize on screens, bubbles and gadget plays. The first-year standout from Purdue ranks fourth in the NFL in "YAC" (yards after catch) production (193) while averaging 13.2 yards per catch on 16 grabs.

These additions have helped Murray to thrive as a scoring point guard in a fast-break offense. Considering the pace and tempo of the Cardinals’ offense, the upgraded cast of pass-catchers enables Murray to take advantage of the layups and wide-open 3-pointers created by the Air Raid scheme.

The MVP frontrunner is thriving as the distributor within the system. Murray is the third player in the Super Bowl era with an unbeaten record (4-0), 75-plus completion rate (76.1%), and 1,200-plus passing yards (1,273) in his team’s first four games.

The third-year pro has impressive numbers against the blitz (72% completion rate, 13.1 yards per pass attempt, 3-0 TD-INT, and a 153.8 passer rating, per Next Gen Stats) and with the long ball. Murray is averaging 15.4 yards per attempt on downfield passes (10-plus air yards) while posting a 7-3 TD-INT mark and a 115.1 passer rating.

Part of his success can be attributed to his remarkable athleticism and ability to escape pressure. Murray is averaging 4.26 seconds on under-pressure throws, with an 11.4 yards per attempt average, 63.2% completion rate, and a 115.5 passer rating this season. Those numbers are in stark contrast to the 5.8 yards per attempt, 38.6% completion rate and 65.6 passer rating he posted when facing pressure in 2020.

While Murray’s magic tricks have certainly keyed the Cardinals’ efforts, it has been the emergence of the running game that gives the offense staying power. Led by Chase Edmonds and James Conner, the Cardinals are a whisker away from fielding top-five attacks both on the ground and through the air.

Studying the Cardinals’ performance in their 37-20 victory over the Rams in Los Angeles, it was the running game that enabled the team to bludgeon the defense. Sparked by the brilliant designs of offensive line coach/running game coordinator Sean Kugler, the Cardinals have the capacity to play smash-mouth football when needed.

The old-school approach built on physicality and toughness runs counter to the Air Raid’s finesse, but it makes the Cardinals a more dangerous team to defend down the stretch.

The onus falls to a rebuilt frontline led by three-time Pro Bowl center Rodney Hudson to control the trenches in critical situations. The offensive line must move defenders off the ball to create seams for Edmonds and Conner, while also giving Kingsbury enough confidence to take the ball out of Murray's hands in key moments.

Although focusing less on a potential MVP may seem a questionable strategy, the decision to share the wealth and diversify the offensive attack makes Arizona better suited to knock off the hard-nosed squads in the NFC West.

It took some time for Kingsbury to figure out how to build a winner in the desert, but the evolving offensive wiz is having the last laugh at the critics who suggested he was out of his league.

Bucky Brooks is an NFL analyst for FOX Sports and regularly appears on "Speak For Yourself." He also breaks down the game for NFL Network and is a cohost of the "Moving the Sticks" podcast.