Kyler Murray informs Cardinals player he wants them to draft
While the Arizona Cardinals have needs at seemingly every position, quarterback Kyler Murray let them know which player he would like them to take in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft.
According to NFL Network’s Mike Garafalo, Murray is a big fan of a certain 6-foot-6, 311-pound offensive lineman from Ohio State.
Offensive line ranks among Arizona’s top needs. The Cardinals lost Kelvin Beachum (17 starts, 1,158 snaps at right tackle) and Cody Ford (three starts, 318 snaps at left guard) in free agency while Justin Pugh (five starts, 263 snaps at left guard) and Billy Price (11 starts, 752 snaps at center) are both free agents.
This isn’t the first time Murray has advocated for the Cardinals to take an offensive lineman with their first-round pick.
The 25-year-old QB seemingly pushed for Arizona to grab offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs out of Iowa in 2020, center Creed Humphrey out of Oklahoma in 2021 and center Tyler Linderbaum out of Iowa last season. Instead, the Cardinals picked linebacker Isaiah Simmons, linebacker Zaven Collins and receiver Marquise Brown (via trade), respectively.
Arizona ranked 13th in pass blocking and 30th in run blocking in 2022, according to Pro Football Focus, with three of the team’s offensive linemen allowing four or more sacks and both starting tackles allowing 25 or more pressures and 20 or more hurries.
In three seasons at Ohio State, Johnson Jr. allowed just three sacks and one quarterback hit on 925 pass-blocking snaps, per PFF. He allowed only two sacks and 14 QB pressures on 449 pass-blocking snaps in 2022 en route to be being named a consensus All-American and earning All-Big Ten First Team honors.
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