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Murray meeting with Cardinals; would be 'great' to go No. 1

[March 02, 2019] INDIANAPOLIS - The Arizona Cardinals have publicly supported Josh Rosen as their quarterback of the future, but it appears they are at least considering targeting Kyler Murray in the draft.

The Oklahoma Heisman Trophy winner said Friday at the 2019 NFL Scouting Combine that he is meeting this week with Arizona, which holds the No. 1 pick in April's draft, and he would be thrilled to be the first overall pick.

"To be the No. 1 pick, that's a kid's dream come true," Murray said. "If my name was called No. 1, I'd be ready to go for sure."

New head coach Kliff Kingsbury has voiced confidence in Rosen, but general manager Steve Keim used the qualifier of "right now" when referring to Rosen as his starter on Wednesday. Speculation began swirling when Kingsbury -- who recruited Murray to Texas A&M when he coached there in 2012 -- was hired, and an old quote from his time at Texas Tech resurfaced in which Kingsbury said he would take Murray with the No. 1 pick if he could.

The rumors have continued to fly in Indianapolis, and Murray himself agrees it would be a great fit.

"I know what type of offense he runs," Murray said of Kingsbury. "Obviously he recruited me out of high school, I have a great relationship with him. If I were to play under him, I think it'd be a great deal.

"But again, like I said, I don't get to pick the players. All I can do is show up where I'm supposed to be, work hard and get after it."

If he doesn't get picked by the Cardinals, Murray is still expected to challenge Ohio State's Dwayne Haskins to be the first quarterback off the board. Haskins told reporters earlier Friday he's less concerned about going first than about landing in the right spot, and Murray had a similar refrain.

"I'm not going into it with any expectations, like, 'If this guy gets taken before me, I'm going to be upset,'" Murray said. "Nah, I'm going to be happy wherever I go."

Murray's week in Indianapolis got off to a great start on measurement day, where he stood 5-foot-10 1/8 and weighed in at 207 pounds, both above expectations. He said he played around 195 pounds at Oklahoma but intends to play heavier in the NFL, adding that having more time in his schedule and all of his focus on football has made it much easier to keep weight on.

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Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray (QB11) speaks to media during the 2019 NFL Combine at the Indiana Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

Murray won't participate in any workouts when the quarterbacks take the field Saturday, but he does plan to do everything at his pro day.

As for meetings with teams this week, he said he hasn't been grilled much about whether he's fully committed to football, after declaring as much a few weeks ago.

"I think for the most part everybody's been pretty solid knowing that I'm here to play football," he said.

"It's a final decision," Murray added about leaving baseball for the NFL. "I'm here, I'm ready to go. I was born a football player. I love this game. There was no turning back when I made this decision. I'm 100 percent in."

Now a few weeks removed from the announcement, Murray admitted it's a bit of a relief to put it behind him and narrow his focus on one sport. He also isn't having any second thoughts, despite many pointing out the size of Bryce Harper's 13-year, $330 million contract as a reason he should have stuck with baseball.

"Everybody makes a big deal about it because it's $300 million dollars," Murray said. "There's quarterbacks making more money than him per year."

If Murray follows in the footsteps of his Oklahoma and Heisman-winning predecessor, Baker Mayfield, he'll start his career with around $33 million fully guaranteed over his first four years. The NFL's highest-paid player, Aaron Rodgers, makes $33.5 million annually on his new deal.

--By David DeChant, Field Level Media

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