WASHINGTON (106.7 The Fan) -- Kyler Murray is riding a roller coaster.
The Heisman Trophy winner out of Oklahoma was the tepid fourth-rated quarterback for the upcoming NFL Draft until measuring 5-feet-10 at the recent NFL Scouting Combine. Suddenly, critics saying he was too small vanished, and talk surfaced of the Arizona Cardinals taking Murray at No. 1 overall and trading last year's first-round quarterback Josh Rosen.
But former Washington Redskins and Houston Texans general manager Charley Casserly fired a salvo on Tuesday. The NFL Network analyst trashed Murray's work habits and basically called him a bust in the making.
"(Murray) better hope (Kliff) Kingsbury takes him No. 1 because (the Combine) was not good," Casserly said. "These were the worst comments I ever got on a high-rated quarterback, and I've been doing this a long time. Leadership: not good. Study habits: not good. The board work: below not good. Not good at all in any of those areas, raising major concerns about what this guy is going to do.
"Now, people will say we're going to compare him to (Patrick) Mahomes. We're going to run an offense like Mahomes. We're going to run an offense like Baker Mayfield. ... But those guys are much different. Those guys, you never questioned them about their ability on the board. You never questioned their leadership ability, their work habits. They were outstanding in those areas. This guy is not outstanding in those areas, and it showed up in the interview."
Casserly can be blunt, but he's always fair. To hear someone who started in the NFL under George Allen in the 1970s and always limits his public remarks go after Murray, that's not just a red flag, it's a do-not-resuscitate order.
The Cardinals better see Murray as he is, not as they want him to be, because a bad attitude is something that can't be fixed. Ask the coaches who lived with Jeff George, Jay Schroeder, Ryan Leaf or so many other busts. The NFL isn't about who has the best arm. It's about who works hardest. Puts in the time. Works well with others. Essentially, everything Casserly was told by NFL execs that Murray didn't show in the Combine interviews.
The first warning sign was Murray's terrible interview with Dan Patrick at the Super Bowl. That really raised some eyebrows. Now the whole league has noticed. Still, it may not matter. It only takes one team to believe in Murray.
But suppose that team becomes the Redskins at No. 15 after others have passed on the rookie. Washington's track record ignoring warning signals is pretty poor. If Murray falls to them, it may not be a gift, but a gag.
By Rick Snider