A few weeks ago I said I didn't particularly want Murray to run all that much and K9 said I think he'd expect no less than 600 yards.
ESPN did a fantasy thing where they forecast stats, for Murray they had 100 rushes, and Murray reportedly told them he thought 100 was quite low. Looking at 16 games it's only 6.25 rushes per game and Murray expected it to be more than that(he didn't give a number).
So looks like my comment was wrong, I am still hoping he's the same about it in the NFL he was in college where he was really smart about getting down or out of bounds to avoid the big hits.
This:
10. I am probably too low on Kyler Murray
I spoke of
Kyler Murray earlier in the Hakeem Butler section, but wanted to focus solely on Murray here. Both Butler and
Andy Isabella (another Cardinals draftee who was also at the rookie premiere) raved about Murray's accuracy in practice. But the thing I found most interesting was his reaction to his
ESPN projection. Most players (with the exception of the aforementioned Renfrow, of course) took the over on their projection or just said, "Sounds good to me, I'm just trying to help the team win, blah, blah, blah."
But Murray was shocked and upset when I told him we were projecting a line that read 3,798 passing yards, 22 TDs, 14 INTs and 100 carries for 558 yards and three more touchdowns. He looked at me as if I read it wrong. "A 22-to-14 TD-interception rate?" he said shaking his head. Clearly, he does not think he will come close to that high a turnover rate.
The other part of his projection he thought was crazy was 100 rushing attempts. He thought he'd be way over that. I asked him if he expected a lot of designed runs. I said we knew he'd have a lot of scrambles on broken plays, but was he hoping for more designed run calls? He said no, "not with the guys in this league."
But even with that lack of desire for designed runs he thought, over a 16-game season, 100 rushing attempts was too low. I have
Kyler as the No. 14 QB right now and I'm likely too low.
And this was fun:
1. Murray and Butler quickly developing chemistry
While I was interviewing
Arizona Cardinalswide receiver
Hakeem Butler, a funny thing happened.
Kyler Murray came over and intentionally "ruined" his answer, interrupting Butler and giving him some good-natured, well, you know the word I'd use here if I could. Let's keep it family-friendly and say he gave him some "razzing." Butler wasn't fazed and gave it right back to the quarterback. It was a fun, light-hearted moment, but what struck me is how comfortable they seemed with each other.
I asked Butler about that interaction after Murray left and he just smiled and shrugged. "Well, we're roommates," as if to say, "Duh, Berry." He explained further that a lot of times they don't even talk ball, but just are getting to know each other and that, in a short period of time, they have grown close, a sentiment Kyler echoed to me in a later interview.
Butler relayed a moment that happened in practice when Murray threw a ball high. I later asked Murray about this moment, and here's the story, as I've pieced together from both sides. Murray told me he threw a ball and right away he knew he had thrown it too high, and was getting mad at himself when all of a sudden, Butler came down with it.
Butler told me Murray apologized to him that night for the "bad ball," but Butler shrugged him off. It's a play that not only can he make, he
expects to make it. He told Murray he thought nothing was wrong on the ball ... he figured Murray was just putting it in a place to avoid the defender and let Butler "go up and make a play."
Murray told me later how excited he's been, as he's never had a WR the size of Butler (he's 6-foot-6, 225 pounds). From Butler's point of view, using his body, size and winning those 50-50 balls is an important aspect of his game, something he's been working on with Calvin Johnson.
Do you need me to pick up that name I just dropped? Butler has been working out with Megatron himself, learning how to use his big frame and speed in the most effective ways. Clearly, he has already caught Murray's attention.
I met a lot of teammates: college guys who now play on different NFL teams and current pro teammates. All of them said the right things, of course, but none of them was as effusive and seemed as genuinely happy about the other than Kyler Murray and Hakeem Butler.
