Kyler Murray posted a photo of himself in his Arizona Cardinals uniform to Instagram on Monday, days after making waves by scrubbing his account of all references to the franchise.
Murray spoke out Monday after his social media actions led to ESPN reporting that there was friction between him and the Cardinals following their early playoff exit.
“I play this game for the love of it, my teammates, everyone who has helped me get to this position that believed in me & to win championships,” Murray wrote. “All of this nonsense is not what I’m about, never has been, never will be. Anyone who has ever stepped between those lines with me knows how hard I go.
“Love me or hate me but I’m going to continue to grow and get better.”
The No. 1 overall pick of the 2019 draft, fresh off his second Pro Bowl appearance, is entering the final year of a four-year contract. ESPN reported Sunday that after the Cardinals lost 34-11 to the eventual Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams in the wild-card round, Murray was “embarrassed” and felt people in the organization were making him the scapegoat.
The report also stated that Cardinals sources felt Murray was “self-centered, immature and someone who points fingers,” in need of guidance for how to deal with adversity better.
Arizona started the season 7-0 before limping to an 11-6 finish and a wild-card berth. Murray threw for 3,787 yards, 24 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in 14 games, missing three due to injury. He completed a career-high 69.2 percent of his throws and added 423 rushing yards and five touchdowns.
As of Monday evening, Murray had not followed the Cardinals back on Instagram.
–Field Level Media