Arizona Cardinals star quarterback Kyler Murray furiously shouted at head coach Kliff Kingsbury during his team’s 42-34 win over the New Orleans Saints on Thursday night.
Murray has been in the headlines for much of the last year after his agent applied public pressure on the Cardinals to sign the quarterback to a long-term contract. Back in July, Murray signed a five-year extension worth $230.5 million with $160m guaranteed.
Through seven games in 2022, the Cardinals are 3-4 with Murray throwing for 1,667 yards and 7 touchdowns, while rushing for a further 263 yards and a pair of scores. Despite leading Arizona to a huge win over the Saints, the 25-year-old once again found himself in the news after cameras caught him furiously shouting at Kingsbury.
Late in the first half, the Cardinals were trying to get a play off. As time ticked down, Kingsbury seemed desperate for Murray to snap the ball but he opted to take a timeout instead.
The head coach didn’t appear best pleased with the decision. As Murray made his way to the sideline, he clearly screams at Kingsbury: “Calm the f*** down!”
Naturally, a video of his outburst is going viral on social media. It is rare to see a quarterback act like that towards his head coach, hence why the clip was circulated online.
Murray’s frustrations likely stem from the Cardinals’ offensive woes this season after they entered 2022 as a contender in the NFC West but have struggled. The win over the Saints snapped an eight-game home losing streak - and the quarterback played down the rant while suggesting Kingsbury needs to be more chill on the sidelines.
“The clock was running down and we couldn't have got off the play that we were trying to run,” Murray said. “So, it was, I guess it's my fault. I'll take it.
“He’s real animated over there on the sidelines sometimes.”
When asked if Kingsbury was yelling in his ear through his helmet's headset, Murray said no. He added: “I just see the antics.”
Cardinals rookie running back Keaontay Ingram scored a two-yard rush before Eno Benjamin - who put up a career-high 92 yards on the day - ran in the two-point conversion to tie the game 14-14. Murray insisted everything was OK between him and Kingsbury, putting the clash down to a will to win.
“We're good,” Murray declared. “We're going to make it right. We ended up scoring so that was good. But, yeah, that's all I was saying, just chill out.
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“Doesn't faze me or I don't think it fazes him. We're just trying to win. In the moment type of thing. After that we're good.”
Superstar wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins acted as a peacekeeper and got in between the quarterback and the coach. Kingsbury claimed the incident was simply down to a difference in opinion before trying to bring levity to the situation.
“He said I didn't look good on TV acting that fiery,” Kingsbury said. “I don't know, guess it's a Gen Z thing. ‘You're on TV so calm down.’ I like showing emotion.”
Murray threw for 204 yards and a touchdown in the high-scoring win, and he will look to lead the Cardinals to a 4-4 record when they face the Minnesota Vikings next Sunday. The Saints face the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 8.
