Kyler Murray hints how he wants Cardinals to use fourth pick of draft

It sure sounds like Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray wants the club to keep the fourth pick of the 2024 NFL Draft and use it to acquire a playmaker. 

"I don’t know if there’s another quarterback in the league more locked in than me," Murray recently told Scott Thompson of Fox News Digital about the draft. Murray mentioned no prospect by name but may have said plenty about his wishes later in the conversation. 

"I know who I want," Murray said about selection No. 4. "We’ll see if it happens." 

Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon and general manager Monti Ossenfort have repeatedly backed Murray since early 2023, but neither Gannon nor Ossenfort was employed by the club when it signed the 26-year-old to a five-year contract extension in the summer of 2022. This offseason, Murray lost wide receiver Marquise "Hollywood" Brown through free agency and fellow wideout Rondale Moore via a trade with the Atlanta Falcons. 

Many have assumed that Arizona could hold onto the fourth pick and acquire an advertised No. 1 receiver such as Marvin Harrison Jr. However, Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports reported on Tuesday that Ossenfort had "at least two trade-back offers in hand -- at least the bones of the trade -- with more calls likely to come in this week." Jones added that it didn't "make much sense for Ossenfort to make any deal until the Cardinals are on the clock."

Specifically, some think the New York Giants or Minnesota Vikings could trade with Arizona so that one of those clubs can land Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy. The Giants began Wednesday afternoon holding the sixth pick, while the Vikings were at No. 11 in the draft order. 

"I’ve put my foot on the table for a couple guys in the past. It didn’t work out," Murray acknowledged about previous draft experiences." Obviously, things happen. It is what it is, and we move on."

As of Wednesday afternoon, DraftKings Sportsbook listed Harrison as the betting favorite at -225 odds to be the draft's fourth choice. McCarthy was second on the list at +180. It seems unlikely Arizona would take a flier on any quarterback at No. 4. 

"I know Monti and [Gannon] are on the same page, and I know any decision they make is going to be the best decision for the team," Murray added during his chat with Thompson.