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Cardinals double down on not taking Kyler Murray No. 1 in 2019 NFL Draft

By Alex Butler
The Arizona Cardinals appear to be going into the 2019 season with Josh Rosen as starting quarterback. Team president Michael Bidwell and coach Kliff Kingsbury backed the No. 10 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft this week after speculation swirled that the team was interested in Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray. File Photo by David Tulis/UPI
The Arizona Cardinals appear to be going into the 2019 season with Josh Rosen as starting quarterback. Team president Michael Bidwell and coach Kliff Kingsbury backed the No. 10 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft this week after speculation swirled that the team was interested in Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray. File Photo by David Tulis/UPI | License Photo

Feb. 13 (UPI) -- The Arizona Cardinals made their second statement in two days, distancing themselves from taking Kyler Murray with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft.

This time the words came from first-year head coach Kliff Kingsbury, who previously said he would take Murray with the No. 1 overall pick if he had the chance. That was before he was hired to coach the Cardinals.

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Now he's sticking with the Cardinals' current gunslinger, Josh Rosen. Arizona selected the UCLA product with the No. 10 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft.

"Our feelings toward Josh haven't waned or changed or anything," Kingsbury told AZCardinals.com. "I get we have the first pick and so there's going to be a million scenarios over the next three months that are going to come up, but no, Josh is our guy."

Kingsbury coached Murray for one season at Texas Tech before the 2018 Heisman Trophy winner transferred to Oklahoma.

Murray also went on to become a first-round pick by the Oakland Athletics in the 2018 MLB June Amateur Draft. He announced Monday that he is choosing the NFL instead of Major League Baseball.

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Kingsbury's comments came a day after Cardinals president Michael Bidwell told an Arizona radio show that the team plans to build around the foundation it already has in place, including Rosen.

Most mock drafts project the Cardinals selecting Ohio State defensive end Nick Bosa with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, which begins April 25 in Nashville.

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