Kliff Kingsbury echoed his general manager when it came to the idea of Kyler Murray speculation and the Arizona Cardinals – "It comes with the territory," Kingsbury said – as the coach Friday morning continued to analyze Josh Rosen as his starter for 2019.
"He needs to understand we are in this together and I want him to know he kind of has the keys to the castle and let's build this deal as a group," Kingsbury said during an appearance on the Doug and Wolf” show on 98.7, Arizona's Sports Station. "Make sure he is comfortable with what we are doing, if he doesn't like something that is going on with this offense or the way I'm coaching it, let's talk about it and come up with the best answer. When (the QBs) have that type of ownership, it goes a long way."
Kingsbury, not surprisingly, wasn't ruling anything out draft-wise in a general sense.
"I think (GM) Steve (Keim) and I are in alignment and want to do what is best for the organization," Kingsbury said.
But after saying “Josh is our guy” earlier in the week when meeting with the media, Kingsbury spent time Friday noting the things he likes about Rosen – and also that his offense shouldn't be pigeon-holed, not only with the quarterbacks that might be able to run it but also with how it will look overall.
Kingsbury wouldn't rule out using a fullback. He said the running game with have NFL-style elements to it. He noted that while the father of the "Air Raid" offense, Kingsbury's college coach Mike Leach, is a purist with that system, the derivatives of that system from coaches from Leach's tree all have developed their own styles.
With Kingsbury moving his playbook to the NFL, "I don't think it'll be as foreign as people are saying."
He also knocked down the idea that there is the perfect quarterback for what he wants to do – a question rooted in the Murray talk – saying he doesn't need a mobile or fast QB necessarily, just a quarterback who can escape and keep his eyes down the field. Kingsbury noted Tom Brady has shown that ability and Brady certainly isn't considered mobile.
Rosen showed he could move around well enough as a rookie. Kingsbury did acknowledge he wasn't going to make too many judgments on Rosen until he sees him in person. There still isn't much communication there – because of CBA rules, teams and players cannot talk much about football until April – but Kingsbury discussed again Rosen's extraordinary arm talent and mental toughness.
"Every time I've turned on the tape, there is something you like and something you can build with," Kingsbury said.
