TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT
Cards’ WR unit still under construction
Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald makes a one-handed catch during training camp. The team will need a stable of quality receivers.
Kyler Murray is going to throw the ball a lot, so that means someone will need to catch it. And a large part of the Cardinals’ training camp will be about finding out who.
Coach Kliff Kingsbury has already started addressing that. On Friday, he noted how he’s used to playing eight receivers in a game, thanks to college rules, but he could imagine keeping up to seven on the Cardinals’ roster. So for now, he’ll move players around and avoid giving any concrete answers just yet.
It’s too early to say, after all. There are position battles all over the field, and the competition at wide receiver is not unique to the Cardinals this season. Last year, there were similarities: Larry Fitzgerald was a lock, newcomer Christian Kirk was a bright spot and everyone else was in the mix to prove themselves.
Of the 11 wide receivers on the roster right now, four are rookies, three from the draft. Meanwhile, Fitzgerald is entering his 16th season. After that, there’s quite the gap.
Kevin White, who signed to a oneyear contract in March, is next and entering his fifth season. After that, the other receivers have three years or fewer under their belts.
There’s consensus on one important topic: All the wide receivers rave about the way Murray throws the ball. It’s the perfect touch, the perfect spin, the perfect ball, time and again.
It’s just the players catching it that vary. The personalities are different enough to cast a family sitcom.
Kirk is cool and collected, conducting himself with more maturity than a second-year player. Hakeem Butler is funny, talkative, and, according to The Checkdown, believes in aliens.
Andy Isabella is still a little gawky with the cameras in his face and nervously laughs as he talks about being a golf caddie for five years.
“I didn’t even know golf existed. We were like 12,” he said. “I was a pretty bad caddie at first, but I busted my butt.”
He worked hard, just like he did in college at Massachusetts. And perhaps that could be how the rookie will make a good impression on veteran teammates, many of whom are avid golfers.
Isabella doesn’t see it that way: “No, we should probably keep this silent.”
And then there’s Fitzgerald, a golfer himself, sometimes described as a big brother, sometimes as an uncle, who’s pouring advice to a slew of rookies once again.
“A lot of people say don’t meet your idols and things like that, but he’s been a great guy, and I’m thankful for him,” Butler said.
When Isabella had a solid catch Friday, Fitzgerald was the first to run up to him with congratulatory helmet pats. Receptions like that can help a player stand out, but Kingsbury will be keeping an eye on special teams, too.
“That could be the deciding factor when you get to those numbers,” he said Saturday. “We feel like we have a lot of really good competition at position right now, and it comes down to how do you differentiate yourself at the end of camp.”
Even if Kingsbury keeps seven receivers, they won’t all necessarily be active every week. He wants flexibility, but there’s a balance of then putting players in a place where they can excel, particularly when syncing their tendencies with a rookie quarterback.
“I think the bottom line becomes, even if you do keep seven, how do you use all the guys?” said former Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner. “Do you keep ‘em in certain spots, or do you try to get them to play everything? If you try to get to play all over and run a bunch of different routes, that can be a little tougher on a quarterback, going, ‘OK, Larry runs this route this way, and Christian runs it this way, and Andy runs it this way,’ – and you have to think about that . ... So it’ll be interesting to see how they play that out.”
Warner is also still watching to see which receiver will play more outside, as Fitzgerald, Kirk and Isabella all play well on the inside.
Murray is already making a number of adjustments to the NFL, but he seems to be handling the offense well. Swapping receivers in and out of different routes could add to that load, but Kirk knows it’s just part of the process.
“It’s an uphill battle, but that’s what training camp is for,” Kirk said. “It’s for being able to get out there, get a bunch of reps with one another. (Receivers) coach (David) Raih has done a great job with the rotation, making sure every guy is getting an opportunity to work with Kyler, so he’s learning everybody’s tendencies, so when preseason comes around, we’re able to be smooth sailing.”