The Cardinals were able to get a deal done with quarterback Kyler Murray on Thursday, agreeing to a five-year extension with a reported $230.5 million with $160 million guaranteed.
Arizona head coach Kliff Kingsbury made an appearance on Cardinals play-by-play radio announcer Dave Pasch’s podcast, saying he feels like Murray is going to continue to get better.
“The contract deal — I feel really good about. I know he’s our future here. The talent is generational in what he can do running with the football,” Kingsbury said, via Ryan Sanudo of SI.com. “Each year you look at the stats, wins anything and it’s gotten dramatically better. That’s what I’ve been really excited about. I knew when we drafted him [that] he had a chance to be [one of the] top guys in the league.
“The kid’s come in — rookie of the year, back-to-back Pro Bowls. I think he takes criticism. I think some of [it] is unfair for some reasons I won’t get into. We know what he brings and every Sunday [when] we line up with him as the quarterback, we have a real chance at winning in a game.”
Kingsbury added that Murray is a big reason why he feels the Cardinals can compete with anyone in the league each and every week.
“You see the market for these quarterbacks and what guys are getting paid,” Kingsbury said. “There’s very few [QBs] when you line up every Sunday and say we have a chance. Our guy is one of those that give you a chance. And at his best, I don’t know who’s better in this league.
“We can compete with anybody. Going into last year, everyone picked us fourth. … To come from when we started … we feel like we have a chance to take another step. Love the core that we have coming back. Excited about some of the additions we’ve made. Can’t wait to get started.”
The Cardinals began last season 10-2 but lost four of their last five games to finish 11-6 and lost to the Rams in the wild card round.
Murray completed 69.2 percent of his passes for 3,787 yards with 24 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in his third season. He was selected to his second consecutive Pro Bowl.