Cardinals' Clayton Tune: Backup duty to begin season
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Tune is in line to begin the 2024 season as the Cardinals' No. 2 QB behind starter Kyler Murray, Tyler Drake of ArizonaSports.com reports.
In the midst of roster cuts this week, Arizona waived Desmond Ridder on Tuesday before signing him to the practice squad one day later. The move left Murray and Tune as the only signal-callers on the active roster, indicating their respective standings among the group. Tune, a 2023 fifth-round pick, made seven appearances (one start) last season, completing 12 of 21 passes for 62 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions, rushing eight times for 30 yards and one TD and fumbling twice (one lost).
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Cardinals' Clayton Tune: Gets start in preseason finale
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Tune completed 12 of 18 passes for 119 yards and an interception in Sunday's 38-12 preseason loss to the Broncos.
The 2023 fifth-round pick got the start under center, and while he was fairly efficient, Tune led the Cardinals to just one Matt Prater 50-yard field goal in his five first-half drives. Desmond Ridder took over to begin the third quarter but left the game late in the fourth after taking a hit, and he was placed in the concussion protocol. With Ridder's availability for Week 1 now in question, Tune could begin the season as Kyler Murray's top backup.
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Cardinals' Clayton Tune: Set to start Sunday
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Tune is slated to start Sunday's preseason finale against the Broncos, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.
With Kyler Murray not in line to see any exhibition action, Tune will get the starting nod Sunday and will be followed by Desmond Ridder. Tune and Ridder remain in contention to work as Murray's top backup, though Rapoport suggests that the Cardinals could elect to keep all three QB's on their initial 53-man roster.
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Cardinals' Clayton Tune: Starts exhibition game
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Tune completed eight of his 10 pass attempts for 79 yards while rushing twice for 15 yards and a touchdown in Saturday's preseason loss to the Colts.
Tune started under center in place of Kyler Murray (coach's decision) and produced strong results for the second week in a row. The sophomore backup wound up scoring his team's only touchdown with his legs before turning the keys over to fellow backup Desmond Ridder in the second half. Tune outperformed the latter for the second week running, despite flipping roles (and strength of opposing defenses) on both occasions. Perhaps Tune has made a case to leap the slightly more experienced Ridder in the competition for the No. 2 role in Arizona.
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Cardinals' Clayton Tune: Moving back to backup role
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Tune will return to a backup role after Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon confirmed Friday that Kyler Murray (knee) will start Sunday's game against the Falcons, Donnie Druin of SI.com reports.
Gannon had already hinted Monday that Murray was tracking toward the Week 10 start, but the Cardinals didn't make Murray's return to the lineup official until they had a chance to evaluate him in practices this week. With his surgically-repaired knee evidently checking out fine, Murray should remain atop the depth chart the rest of the way, even while the 1-8 Cardinals play out the string on a losing season. After Arizona traded Joshua Dobbs to Minnesota on Oct. 31, Tune stepped in to make his first NFL start Week 9 but struggled mightily in a 27-0 loss to the Browns, completing 11 of 20 passes for 58 yards and two interceptions while adding 28 yards on the ground and also losing a fumble.
Tune completed 11 of 20 passes for 58 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions in the Cardinals' 27-0 loss to the Browns on Sunday. He also rushed five times for 28 yards and lost a fumble.
The results were about what was to be expected when throwing a rookie quarterback out for his first start against an aggressive Browns defense, with Tune often looking out of sorts while taking a whopping seven sacks. The 2023 fifth-round pick averaged just 2.9 yards per attempt and saw his first pick lead to a Cleveland touchdown and his second result in a field-goal attempt that was missed. Tune's stint under center is likely to be a one-and-done scenario unless the Cardinals opt to let Kyler Murray's (knee) 21-day practice window close this upcoming week without activating him.
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Cardinals' Clayton Tune: Expected to open as No. 2 QB
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Tune is in line to be the Cardinals' No. 2 quarterback during Sunday's season opener in Washington, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.
If Rapoport's report is accurate, newcomer Joshua Dobbs will get the first opportunity to lead Arizona's offense for the recovering Kyler Murray, who is continuing his recovery from a torn ACL on the reserve/PUP list as the season gets underway. Dobbs joined the team on Aug. 24 via trade with the Browns, and despite the lack of time to acclimate to the Cardinals offense, he seems as if he'll be operating ahead of Tune, a rookie fifth-round pick. With Murray out for at least the first four games, though, Tune could make his pro debut at some point if Dobbs struggles or needs to miss time for any reason.
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Cardinals' Clayton Tune: Opportunity knocks
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Tune and Joshua Dobbs are Arizona's top options to start Week 1 versus the Commanders following the team's release of Colt McCoy, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
Tune, a rookie fifth-round pick, may be likelier to open the season as Dobbs' backup, though he has benefited from extensive preseason reps. McCoy's release coincides with the news that Kyler Murray (knee) is expected to begin the regular season on the reserve/PUP list, meaning the Cardinals will need either Dobbs or Tune, if not a combination of the two, to hold down the fort under center for at least the first four weeks of the year. The team also has David Blough and Jeff Driskel (calf) on the roster, although further cuts could be forthcoming.
