*Kyler Murray – Noteworthy
It turns out that the most important moment of the week in determining whether Kyler Murray is the next franchise quarterback of the Miami Dolphins won’t be in the much-anticipated, once-and-for-all verdict on his size. No, in a perfect world, it would happen in a small meeting room, late at night, when general manager Chris Grier and coach Brian Flores huddle with a worn-out Murray and test not his arm, but his mind. “We’ve seen a lot of guys come through the league that have big arms and can make every throw but if they’re not wired right upstairs they’re not going to make it,” Grier said Wednesday at the NFL Combine. Murray, the former Oklahoma quarterback and Heisman winner, is favored by oddsmakers to be selected by the Dolphins, who own the 13th overall pick in the NFL Draft.
Murray completed 69 percent of his passes last season (260 of 377) for 4,361 yards. He had 42 touchdown passes against only seven interceptions. “I think he had a phenomenal year this year,” Flores said. “I think he’s a great athlete. I think he’s a very good player.” That’s evident for all to see on film. Now it’s a matter of what the Dolphins can learn when they spend their allotted 15 minutes interviewing prospects, including Murray. “We want them smart, we want them tough, mentally and physically,” Flores said. – Palm Beach Post
*Kyler Murray – Noteworthy
If Josh Rosen was seeking clarity on his status with the Arizona Cardinals, whether it’s a long-term relationship just starting to bloom or a brief fling about to end, the answers were not coming directly from the NFL scouting combine. Asked what Rosen’s status was with the team, Cardinals GM Steve Keim said Wednesday, “Yeah, he is [the starting QB] right now, for sure.” Keim later added that “we’re together right now, for sure.” It just so happens that the Cardinals are the owners of the first pick in the draft this year, when there might not be a clear-cut option for their team at another position. Cardinals first-year head coach Kliff Kingsbury famously said back in October (when he was Texas Tech’s head coach and not realistically poised to be an NFL head coach at that time) that he felt Oklahoma QB Kyler Murray was “a freak” and that he “would take him with the first pick of the draft if I could.”
Funny how things can change in this league in such a short amount of time. Keim backed his new head coach’s comments from a few months ago, back when Kingsbury’s circumstances were far different. “I think what Kliff said was trying to avoid bulletin-board material,” Keim said. “I think if you’re [at] Texas Tech, I would’ve said the same thing about an Oklahoma quarterback.” Asked specifically about Murray’s potential. Keim sidestepped the question for the most part. “Again, it’s still early in the process,” he said. “We haven’t even gone through a full evaluation at all the positions so really, again, it’s too early to say.” – Oneida Dispatch