NFL Network's Kyle Brandt Calls Out Kyler Murray Haters, Says Video Game Jokes Are No Longer Allowed

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We may only be two weeks into the newest NFL season, and the Arizona Cardinals may be just 1-1 on the year, but folks seem to really be buying into the Kyler Murray hype, and NFL Network's Kyle Brandt is leading the charge.

Murray was good against the Buffalo Bills in Week 1 despite the Cardinals losing 34-28, but was legitimately great during his team's 41-10 thrashing of the Los Angeles Rams this past Sunday. The former Heisman Trophy winner went 17-for-21 through the air against LA for 266 yards and three touchdowns.

Through two weeks, Murray has completed 73.1% of his passes, thrown four touchdowns, zero interceptions, and owns a QB rating of 122.9. Those are big-time numbers for a guy who had plenty of pressure on him to perform entering his first full season since tearing his ACL in 2022.

Brand, a co-host on ‘Good Morning Football,’ appears to be ready to run through a brick wall for Murray. Not only did he award the signal caller his ‘game ball’ during Monday's show, he stood up for Murray and said that jokes about the quarterback's height and his love for video games are officially off-limits moving forward.

"You’re going to have to find a new joke. It’s over guys. You’ve been feasting on this guy for two years, three years."

"The short jokes. The video game jokes. I’m going to go all in here. It has been brought to my attention that there is a new edition of the ‘Call Of Duty’ franchise that comes out this fall. It comes out Oct. 25. …I’m going to say right now that Kyler Murray is going to be brilliant in that game," Brandt said, with the Cardinals playing the Miami Dolphins shortly after the game's release.

For anyone who may have forgotten, the NFL world went crazy for a few days when the Cardinals put the now-removed "Independent Study" clause in Murray's new contract in which they were essentially forcing the star QB to mandate four hours a week to film study. Some Internet sleuths determined that Murray plays significantly worse on weekends when Call of Duty is running promotions on the game.

If Murray can continue to play at the clip he is, stay healthy, and get past the hurdle that is Call of Duty, we could be talking about the Cardinals fighting for a playoff berth later this season.

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Mark covers all sports at OutKick while keeping a close eye on the world of professional golf. He graduated from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga before earning his master's degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee. He somehow survived living in Knoxville despite ‘Rocky Top’ being his least favorite song ever written. Before joining OutKick, he wrote for various outlets including SB Nation, The Spun, and BroBible. Mark was also a writer for the Chicago Cubs Double-A affiliate in 2016 when the team won the World Series. He's still waiting for his championship ring to arrive. Follow him on Twitter @itismarkharris.