Cardinals QB Kyler Murray Carted Off Field With Knee Injury In Loss To Patriots
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Kyler Murray of the Arizona Cardinals was carried off the field with a noncontact knee injury less than 90 seconds into Monday night’s game against the New England Patriots.
Murray is set to have additional tests, including an MRI, on Tuesday, but a source told ESPN that there is “little doubt that it’s torn,” referring to an ACL.
Arizona coach Kliff Kingsbury said after the game that Murray’s injury “doesn’t seem good, but we’ll know more in the morning.”
“Obviously, that didn’t look good,” said Kingsbury. “I’d never seen him in that kind of form before, so I figured it wasn’t good.”
Kyler Murray was injured on the third play of the game following a 3-yard run to the right. Kyler Murray was being treated by team athletic trainers and medics at 13:39 p.m. He wasn’t touched before he collapsed.
“Anytime you see a noncontact injury, you know it’s worse right away,” Cardinals wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins said.
“That hurt. Kyler put a lot into this. He’s been preparing his butt off to get back after the hamstring [injury that kept him out of Weeks 10 and 11], so for that to happen, I hate that for him. I know he’ll recover and get back to himself.”
Murray’s teammates instantly took a knee around him, and Kingsbury was on on the field checking on the star quarterback.
Murray rode in the cart with a team athletic trainer off the field and toward the Cardinals’ locker room. Murray was sobbing as he entered the tunnel on the cart, according to ESPN’s Lisa Salters on the game broadcast.
“Just tough because he controls the offense,” left tackle Josh Jones said. “He’s a crazy guy out there. He can do so much. It was tough losing him so early. I hope he’s OK. I don’t know what was going on with him. I just hope he’s OK.”
Murray was replaced in the game by backup Colt McCoy. He was sacked six times and passed for 246 yards on 27-of-40 passing with an interception in Arizona’s 27-13 loss to New England.
When Murray was absent for two games last month, McCoy, 36, had a 1-1 record as the team’s quarterback. Should Murray miss time, McCoy is expected to start the Cardinals’ last four games. McCoy hasn’t started at least six games in a season since 2011, and he’s about to do so at the age of 36, which he laughed off.
He believes he is prepared to take over the offence, especially with a week of practise before the Cardinals travel to Denver to face the Broncos on Sunday.
“I’ve played for a long time and you always gotta be ready,” McCoy said. “You never want to see the guy in front of you go down. You just don’t. I’ve had a lot of opportunities in my career. I’ve gotten injured. So, I’m thankful to be on this team, on this squad and I love the guys that we have.”
Kingsbury agreed that McCoy is ready.
“There’s no doubt,” Kingsbury said. “He’s got a great feel for the system. I thought he did some good stuff tonight. It’s always tough when you haven’t had the reps during the week, but I thought he gave us a chance. Some of those plays that got called back, a couple of tough drops and then, obviously, the turnovers just put us behind the eight ball.”
Murray is a two-time Pro Bowler who was selected first overall in the 2019 NFL Draft out of Oklahoma. During the offseason, the 25-year-old inked a $230.5 million contract extension that may keep him with the team until 2028.
Murray was in his 11th game of the season. He has thrown for 2,359 yards, 14 touchdowns, and seven interceptions into Monday’s game.
This season, the Cardinals have been hampered by injuries, particularly on offence. They’re missing four starting offensive linemen and tight end Zach Ertz for the season due to a knee injury.
“We’ve battled injuries all year long and the guys that are gonna go in there … they’re gonna fight ’til the very end,” McCoy said. “I don’t think there’s any more than you can ask for and I’d be proud to go lead them.”