Josh Weinfuss
TEMPE, Ariz. — Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray will go on injured reserve as he continues to rehabilitate a foot injury he suffered in Week 5, coach Jonathan Gannon said Wednesday.
The injury isn’t season-ending, Gannon said. Murray will have a chance to return if his foot gets healthy.
“I really do [hope that happens],” Gannon said. “We got a lot of ball to play, and one day at a time. And where he sits right now is he’s got to pour into his health bucket and get ready to get healthy.”
With Murray out for at least the next four weeks, Jacoby Brissett will continue to be the Cardinals’ starter with Kedon Slovis as his backup. Gannon said the Cardinals will look to add another quarterback.
“Jacoby does his job, takes it one day at a time, prepares when he wasn’t the starter, prepares to be the starter,” Gannon said. “He knows his role can change, and now he’s going to prepare the same way.”
Murray would be eligible to return in Week 14 against the Los Angeles Rams (Dec. 7).
The decision to put Murray on IR came together Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, Gannon said. It was a collective decision between the team and Murray, along with his representatives.
In the end, Gannon said, it was the best thing to do for Murray and for the team.
“He’s not fully healthy, ready to go yet, so that makes the most sense,” Gannon said. “Obviously that’s a change, but we just felt. looking at it right now, that’s the best thing for him and us.
“He’s fully committed. Right now, what he’s going to concentrate on is getting healthy. He’s not healthy enough to play. He needs to get healthy so he can get back to playing football.”
After weeks of uncertainty about whether Murray would or wouldn’t be healthy enough to play, Gannon said the decision to put Murray on injured reserve was based on the information the team currently has.
Gannon said it was “very fair” to say that Murray’s foot injury was a situation tougher for him to return from than other quarterbacks who don’t rely on their legs to make plays as much as Murray does.
“Obviously, for him, it prevents him from being fully healthy to go play, and him, as the person that he is and the player that he is, yes,” Gannon said. “And you could look at other things, like this injury for other people might not, but he’s played through some things that other positions, if they have those, they can’t play with those because of what they’re asked to do.”
Gannon said that Murray took the news “as good as you can take it” and added that the quarterback is in a good place to focus on his rehab.
