Kyler Murray Mocked for “Smiling” During His Statue Unveiling Ceremony at Oklahoma University After a Disastrous 2022

On Saturday, Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray added a new feather to his list of achievements after his alma mater, Oklahoma University, unveiled a statue of their former QB. He was the seventh Heisman Trophy winner for OU, and this achievement came at an unprecedented time. While he is on the verge of making a comeback, netizens trolled him for being loose and smiling at the event.

Last season, the Cardinals were placed at the bottom of the NFC West with a depressing record of 4-13. Murray was offered a five-year, $230.5 million contract and secured his position in the franchise; however, the quarterback failed miserably to meet the expectations.

Kyler Murray gets a new statue in Oklahoma

The Texas native racked up incredible college records before stepping into the NFL arena in 2019. It was one of the main reasons why he was selected as the first overall pick in that year’s draft class. Apart from the Heisman Trophy, the Manning Award and the Davey O’Brien Awards were some of his accolades.

To commemorate the achievements of their star, Oklahoma unveiled the statue in front of prominent personalities. Cardinals G.M. Monti Ossenfort and first-year head coach Jonathan Gannon also took part in the event.

This new statue was unveiled alongside the other six Heisman Trophy winners: Baker Mayfield, Sam Bradford, Jason White, Billy Sims, Steve Owens, and Billy Vessels. It was indeed a surreal experience for Murray to get enshrined in the record books of college football. When asked about the entire setup, the 25-year-old looked happy and smiled throughout the session.

“I look damn good,” Murray said, per Pro Football Talk. “It’s gonna be hard to mess these up. Gonna win a lot of games in these, for sure,” he added. While the passer looked happy about this achievement, fans have been calling him out. All because he didn’t have a good 2022 season.

The head coach speaks on Murray’s future in the Cardinals’ locker room

The two-time Pro Bowler suffered an ACL tear last season. Subsequently, his availability and performance were restricted, directly impacting the Cardinals season record in 2022. While speaking about the current status of Murray and alternative options available to replace the passer, HC Jonathan Gannon continued to back his quarterback. “Obviously, whoever’s out there playing quarterback for us isn’t going to have the same skill set that Kyler has,” Gannon said, per SI.

“So we’ll just tailor-fit what we’re doing with the offense around that guy, and then when Kyler gets back in, we’ll tailor-fit the offense around him. You know, a system will be in place, you might just call it a little bit differently with the guy that’s pulling the trigger,” he added. The offseason has already begun, and the draft days are arriving in a couple of days. It will be interesting to see whether the management will look for more options in the market.