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Kyler Murray Is A Captain As Cardinals Name Theirs For 2020

Gardeck, Humphries also first-time captains

Sep 09, 2020 at 07:34 AM

azcardinals.com

The Cardinals have their captains for the 2020 season and while most are the names you expect, that doesn't mean there isn't some meaning there.

"We were going to have six, and the voting was so close, we ended up having eight," coach Kliff Kingsbury said.

Kyler Murray becomes a captain for the first time. That's probably not a surprise, but it's always good when your QB morphs into the leader you want and need. That D.J. Humphries has earned the respect to be a captain is impressive, showing the growth he's made since he came in as a rookie who never played.

On defense, the name that sticks out is Patrick Peterson, but for this reason: There seems to be a portion of the fans,(understandably) upset about Peterson's suspension a year ago, who think it wrecked Peterson's reputation in the locker room. Except it did not. That he was still voted a captain -- he obviously wasn't one last year -- is tangible proof of that. Peterson has had a very good camp and is primed to have an excellent season.

Finally, there is Dennis Gardeck, who went from a fringe undrafted rookie who looked and played a little bit like Pat Tillman to a Pro Bowl alternate and now a special teams captain.

"(From) working at McDonald's to being a team captain of the Arizona Cardinals is quite a story," Kingsbury said. "It's a testament to his work ethic, his determination. Being on the scout team, when I'm calling offensive plays, I'm like, 'There's Gardeck, screwing up the play.' You want him to go hard, but he goes so hard every snap sometimes he makes it look bad. That's just his mentality when he steps on the field every day. Just thrilled to see (him be captain.)