Josh Rosen-To-New England Rumors Will Have To Take A Break
BOSTON (CBS) -- Once upon a time, the sports world created a very plausible scenario that saw the New England Patriots swoop in and nab Josh Rosen, quarterback of the future, from the Arizona Cardinals this offseason. That scenario was crushed on Tuesday afternoon.
That's because the Cardinals, who currently employ Rosen and also own the No. 1 pick, committed to the 22-year-old as their quarterback.
"Our feelings toward Josh haven't waned or changed," Kingsbury said, per the team's official website. "I get that we have the first pick and there are going to be a million scenarios, and over the next three months they are going to come up. But Josh is our guy."
So ends the Rosen-to-New England scenario. For now, anyway.
The reason that idea caught fire was because Kingsbury, then as head coach at Texas Tech, sang the praises of then-Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray. Kingsbury was very specific about what he would do if he ever had the opportunity to draft Murray with the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft.
"Kyler is a freak," Kingsbury said back in October. "I've followed him since he was a sophomore in high school. I just think the world of him and what he can do on the football field. … I'd take him with the first pick of the draft if I could. I know he's signed up to play baseball, but he is a dominant football player. And I would take him with the first pick."
As fate would have it, Kingsbury ended up being the coach of the team that owns the No. 1 pick just a few months later. So of course, the speculation made sense.
And that idea was furthered this week when Murray announced that he had chosen an agent ... the same agent who represents Kingsbury.
Alas, Kingsbury asserted Tuesday that things have changed.
"Kyler is a tremendous player, and I said that, being very complimentary before we played an opponent," Kingsbury said. "I understand the sound bite. But like I said there will be a ton of scenarios before we come to the draft."
Rosen completed 55.2 percent of his passes for 2,278 yards, 11 touchdowns and 14 interceptions as a rookie, after being drafted 10th overall last spring. The Cardinals fired head coach Steve Wilks after just one season before hiring Kingsbury, who's known for his work in college with Johnny Manziel and Patrick Mahomes.
That added to the speculation that Kingsbury might have designs on drafting Murray, but the head coach made it pretty clear on Tuesday that he and the organization are committed to Rosen.
