• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Phoenix Sports Today

Phoenix Sports News Continuously Updated

  • Cardinals
  • Diamondbacks
  • Coyotes
  • Basketball
    • Mercury
    • Suns
  • Soccer
  • Colleges
    • Arizona State
    • Grand Canyon University
    • Northern Arizona
    • University of Arizona

Michael Bidwill believes in QB Kyler Murray’s improved leadership

September 8, 2021 by ArizonaSports.com - 98.7 FM

The theme of the Arizona Cardinals’ offseason has generally been perceived two ways.

Either Arizona went all-in by signing veterans who needed an environmental refresh or it went all-in by trading and spending on over-the-hill veterans.

No matter which way you lean toward, what has gotten lost in acquiring J.J. Watt, Rodney Hudson and A.J. Green, among others, is that those players have changed the locker room dynamics.

The Cardinals believe it’s for the better, and in concert with Patrick Peterson and Larry Fitzgerald no longer being around, altering the personality ecosystem was a big piece of the roster turnover spanning 2020 and 2021. How it goes, we’ll see starting this week.

Owner Michael Bidwill spoke to the calculations he and general manager Steve Keim made regarding fitting a leadership puzzle of veteran voices with returning stars like Kyler Murray, Budda Baker and Chandler Jones.

RELATED STORIES
  • Cardinals’ Week 1 depth chart slots Josh Jones in as starting RG vs. Titans

  • Cardinals see mixed reviews among NFL power rankings ahead of Week 1

  • Arizona Cardinals’ 2021 roadmap to success littered with uncertainty

  • Larry Fitzgerald will be rooting for, watching Cardinals friends in Week 1

  • Pinning down expectations for Kyler Murray’s 3rd year with Cardinals

“I think it’s about growing the young leaders that we have,” Bidwill said on Monday’s edition of The Dave Pasch Podcast. “There’s so many great leaders that we have on this team and making sure as we bring on new leaders — DeAndre (Hopkins) from a year ago, J.J., Rodney Hudson — they’re all doing a terrific job. We’re asking all those coaches to make sure they’re leaders in each one of those rooms. They’re doing it anyway, but we’re really putting an emphasis on it from top to bottom.

“I think it’s really showed and it’s given the space for those young leaders to speak up and to be able to speak to their teammates. I think Kyler has showed a lot of leadership. In his third year, he needed to get comfortable and he’s gotten comfortable holding his teammates accountable.”

Of course, Murray is tasked with leading a roster that last season underachieved on offense. On defense — Watt aside — the team has put the onus on a younger players from the defensive front to the backend.

If the Cardinals are to overachieve compared to the nationally unfavorable expectations this season, it will likely be Murray’s production that can push the team into playoff contention.

He threw 26 touchdowns to 12 interceptions in his second season, completing 67% of his passes while scoring 11 rushing touchdowns on 6.2 yards per carry.

Murray’s dynamic ground game took a hit when he was banged up later in the year, and that had a bit to do with a team going 6-3 to begin 2020 only to finish at 8-8.

It’s not lost on Arizona that the quarterback’s production, even if he’s healthy, can take the team only so far. Bidwill told Pasch that the team indeed expects Murray to take his leadership to another level.

And Bidwill believes he’s seeing that before a Week 1 game against the Tennessee Titans.

“I think it’s natural for any young player to come in, it’s gotta be an intimidating situation,” Bidwill said. “You come in at 22 years old and you’re expected to be the leader of the entire team and not just one side of the ball. It’s going to take a little bit of time. I think he’s done that, he’s done a good job.

“He’s organized (workouts and team events) in Dallas in the offseason, he’s been communicating with his teammates and certainly at training camp he’s holding them accountable out on the practice field. You can see it.”

Follow @kzimmermanaz

Filed Under: Cardinals

Primary Sidebar

Recent Posts

  • Offense: Diamondbacks Do It Right
  • Cardinals Reacts Survey: Who wins the right guard competition for the Arizona Cardinals?
  • An open letter to Mat Ishbia regarding Chris Paul
  • An open letter to Mat Ishbia regarding Chris Paul
  • (no title)

Categories

Archives

Our Partners

All Sports

  • 247 Sports
  • ArizonaSports.com - 98.7 FM
  • Bleacher Report
  • Heat Waved
  • OurSports Central
  • The Arizona Republic
  • The Sports Fan Journal
  • USA Today

Baseball

  • Arizona Diamondbacks
  • AZ Snake Pit
  • Last Word On Baseball
  • MLB Trade Rumors
  • Venom Strikes

Basketball

  • Phoenix Suns
  • Amico Hoops
  • Basketball Insiders
  • Bright Side Of The Sun
  • High Post Hoops
  • Hoops Hype
  • Hoops Rumors
  • Last Word On Pro Basketball
  • Pro Basketball Talk
  • Real GM
  • Valley Of The Suns

Football

  • Arizona Cardinals
  • Cardinals Gab
  • Cards Wire
  • Deep Dive
  • Last Word On Pro Football
  • NFL Trade Rumors
  • Our Turf Football
  • Pro Football Rumors
  • Pro Football Talk
  • Raising Zona
  • Revenge Of The Birds
  • Words From The Birds

Hockey

  • Elite Prospects
  • Five For Howling
  • Howlin Hockey
  • Last Word On Hockey
  • Pro Hockey Rumors
  • Pro Hockey Talk
  • The Hockey Writers

Soccer

  • Last Word on Soccer
  • MLS Multiplex

College

  • AZ Desert Swarm
  • Busting Brackets
  • College Football News
  • College Sports Madness
  • Devils In Detail
  • House Of Sparky
  • Last Word On College Basketball - Univ of Arizona
  • Saturday Blitz
  • Zags Blog
  • Zona Zealots

Copyright © 2025 · Magazine Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in