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After a 6-for-7, one-drive night for Kyler Murray in preseason Week 1, he struggled in Week 2. His Arizona Cardinals hosted the Oakland Raiders on Thursday night in a 33-26 loss. Murray went 3-for-8 for 12 yards on 15 plays.
The No. 1 overall pick and Heisman Trophy winner was sacked twice, including one for a safety. With Murray on the field for four drives, the Cardinals committed six penalties; three on the first, two on the second, and one on the third. He also added in a rush for four yards.
Murray wasn't benefiting from his offensive line. For the limited snaps he played, the quarterback was running for his life. Though he slipped out of a few tackles, the Raiders pass rush consistently pressured the former Oklahoma Sooner.
Kyler already taking ankles 😡😡 @K1 pic.twitter.com/rxpaknqs2i
— The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) August 16, 2019
All in all, it was a “welcome to the NFL” moment for Murray and the Cardinals. Many rookie quarterbacks struggle in their early exhibition games, playing with some (but not all) starters and in vanilla offensives, and go on to succeed later on.
In the NFL, not all days are sunny for rookie quarterbacks — after all, this isn't Philadelphia. Luckily, he won't be playing meaningful football until early September (against the Detroit Lions on September 8).
As for Murray's backups, second-stringer Brett Hundley had a good night. He went 10-for-15 for 139 yards, including a well-thrown 40-yard touchdown strike to Trent Sherfield. Charles Kanoff found rookie Andy Isabella for a 59-yard touchdown and went 2-for-6 for 65 yards. Rookie Drew Anderson threw a touchdown, passing 6-for-9 for 49 yards.
