The Arizona Cardinals are reportedly expecting a full-scale breakout from Kyler Murray this season.

Doug Haller of The Athletic reported members of the Cardinals’ coaching staff and locker room “rave about the quarterback’s commitment and drive” heading into the 2024 season. Previous questions regarding Murray’s maturity and willingness to prepare have subsided, and he’s seemingly ready to play the best football of his career.

Murray, the No. 1 pick of the 2019 NFL draft, has been solid but unspectacular over his first five NFL seasons. He’s never topped 4,000 yards passing or 30 touchdowns, and he spent most of last season recovering from a torn ACL.

The Cardinals’ previous concerns about Murray’s work ethic are nothing new. They famously added—and later rescinded—a clause in Murray’s five-year, $230.5 million contract extension that required four hours of “independent study” per game week. The clause significantly harmed Murray’s public reputation and perception of his work ethic.

Murray has since drawn rave reviews for his work behind the scenes.

Now fully healthy and comfortable in his second year in offensive coordinator Drew Petzing’s system, Murray has little excuse but to start performing at a Pro Bowl level. Arizona used its first-round pick on Marvin Harrison Jr., a wideout with superstar potential, and James Conner remains an effective back as he approaches his age-29 season.

Add in second-year receiver Michael Wilson and breakout tight end Trey McBride, and Murray has enough talent around him to help elevate the Cardinals back into playoff contention.

“This is ambitious. It’s something that has come up a bunch of times when I’ve interviewed Trey McBride. I’ve talked to other people with the Cardinals—Paris Johnson as well. They don’t think it’s crazy to talk about Kyler Murray as a dark horse MVP candidate. They think that it’s in Kyler Murray,” NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero recently said on the Rich Eisen Show.

Murray being an MVP candidate would represent a large step up from his recent performance level, but the Cardinals would certainly settle for him re-establishing himself as a franchise quarterback.