Outstanding plays by Cardinals QB Kyler Murray outweighs his mistakes

Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray overcame a pair of interceptions to lead his team to a win over the Minnesota Vikings.

We’re now two weeks into the current NFL campaign, and there’s something about Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray that’s becoming increasingly obvious.

The first-overall selection of the 2019 draft has admitted that football at the professional level has slowed down a ton for the Cards‘ talented signal-caller. Murray is still making mistakes, but his tremendous talent is allowing him to overcome the miscues with some jaw-dropping plays.

All of that was on display for Murray this past Sunday during Arizona’s 34-33 triumph over the Minnesota Vikings. The 24-year-old offered up two potentially back-breaking interceptions versus the Vikes, but a series of outstanding throws were enough to lead the Cardinals to victory. Murray completed 29 out of his 36 attempts for 400 yards and three touchdowns through the air, and he also added 31 yards and an additional score on the ground.

Arizona Cardinals rode the arm and legs of their signal-caller to victory

Murray got things cooking on the offense’s second possession of the afternoon when he connected with wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins for a touchdown from 15 yards out. One of the league’s most lethal quarterback/wideout tandems actually hooked up three times during the drive for a total of 46 yards.

The Cards’ next score of the matchup came in the second quarter when Murray found the end zone on a 12-yard scramble through the middle of the Minnesota defense. The drive’s big play was actually a deflected pass that made its way into the hands of tight end Maxx Williams for a 34-yard gain.

Arizona’s third touchdown of the day was a prime example of how special Murray can be. Scrambling to his left, the 5-foot-10, 207-pounder found rookie pass-catcher Rondale Moore, for a 77-yard score down the left sideline.

Murray’s first blunder of the contest came on the Cardinals’ opening possession of the second half. The diminutive passer let go of an ill-advised pass that appeared to be headed towards the 5’7,180 pound Moore. Linebacker Nick Vigil plucked the ball out of the air and raced 38 yards for a Vikings touchdown.

Fortunately, the Cards signal-caller answered his heart-wrenching mistake in a superb way. Murray led his teammates on an eight-play, 75-yard drive culminated in a nine-yard scoring toss to veteran wideout A.J. Green.

The second error of the game by Murray occurred with 3:43 left in the third quarter. A deep pass intended for receiver Christian Kirk was picked off by Minnesota safety Xavier Woods. Murray had Williams wide-open for a much shorter gain but elected to go for the “chunk” play down the middle of the field instead.

Murray pulled one more rabbit out of his hat with 6:12 left in regulation. On a fourth-down and five, the Texas native heaved a 35-yard pass off of his back foot to Kirk that set Arizona up at the Vikings’ six-yard line. Four plays later, placekicker Matt Prater booted what turned out to be a game-winning, 27-yard field goal for the Redbirds.

For anyone who is counting, that’s two tremendous performances in a row for the new face of the Cardinals franchise. One can’t help but have the feeling that there will be many more sensational outings for Murray in 2021.