National Football League

Is Kyler Murray or Kliff Kingsbury the primary problem in Arizona?

Updated Dec. 14, 2022 5:52 p.m. ET

An already bad year for the Arizona Cardinals turned disastrous on Monday night.

On just the third offensive play of the game against the New England Patriots, Cardinals Pro Bowl quarterback Kyler Murray tore his ACL, ending his season and perhaps putting much of 2023 in jeopardy as well.

The 4-9 Cardinals' tumble to last place in the NFC West is one of the league's biggest surprises, especially considering where they were last December. The Cards got off to a 10-2 start and Murray was an MVP candidate. That all changed when Murray suffered an ankle injury, and Arizona lost four of its final five regular-season games before getting blown out in the wild-card round.

Eleven months later and many are debating whether Murray or Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury, both of whom received extensions this past offseason, is the root issue. Colin Cowherd thinks it's the franchise QB.

"I don't think Kliff Kingsbury is Sean Payton or Andy Reid," Cowherd said Tuesday on "The Herd." "But Kyler Murray's trajectory — and I was a huge supporter … his trajectory has gone from 'dynamic, ascending and electric’ to 'he gets hurt a lot, he doesn't love watching film, he's small and doesn't like to get hit, he's sort of aloof and he's not getting better.'

"You can blame Kliff Kingsbury, but Kliff recruited him out of high school. Kliff went to the franchise and said, ‘Draft him, move off Josh Rosen.’ He's been his biggest supporter. So, you can knock Kliff Kingsbury to the street — you're not getting Sean Payton for this job. You're not getting Jim Harbaugh for this job. You're not getting Lincoln Riley for this job. Not interested. This job, now with Kyler Murray's current trajectory, is not a great gig."

What's next for Cardinals after Kyler Murray's injury?

Colin Cowherd believes that the Cardinals can blame Kliff Kingsbury all they want, but that won't fix their problems.

Kingsbury, of course, was hired from Texas Tech due to his offensive background despite his failed six-year tenure as the school's head coach. His progress was modest over his first two seasons in Arizona prior to last year's breakout. A late-season collapse has clearly bled into 2022, however.

Murray, the 2019 No. 1 overall pick, publicly tussled with the franchise over his extension, which initially included a clause to discourage his video gaming. In May, star receiver DeAndre Hopkins was suspended six games for violating the performance-enhancing substances policy. Once the season began, Arizona soon became one of the league’s most injured clubs with several starters missing extended time, including Murray, prized trade acquisition Marquise Brown and tight end Zach Ertz.

Moreover, Murray has experienced a significant drop in production across nearly every major statistical category compared to his two Pro Bowl campaigns.

"Everybody wants to just blow it up," Cowherd lamented. "Who can win with that?"

With an inconsistent 25-year-old QB as the centerpiece — Murray's $230.5 million extension hasn’t even kicked in yet — Cowherd believes the Cardinals will have a tough time luring a high-profile coaching candidate should they decide to move off Kingsbury. They also must decide whether they're comfortable trotting out a 37-year-old Colt McCoy for possibly the bulk of next season.

"If you think Sean Payton is choosing between Kyler Murray and Justin Herbert, I can tell you right now who he's going to choose," Cowherd said. "I can tell you right now who every GM in the NFL would choose, who every coach that has an opening would choose."

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