“If he goes down, you go down” - Stephen A. Smith says Kyler Murray and Kliff Kingsbury’s futures are tied together 

This year may be the end for both Kyler Murray and Kliff Kingsbury. The Arizona Cardinals duo are facing uncertain futures with the organization.

Kyler Murray came out Monday through his agent (who also represents Kingsbury) and said he is willing to stay if the team gives him a long-term contract.

The Cardinals have yet to say if they will fulfill Kyler Murray's wishes, but one thing is certain: Kyler Murray and Kliff Kingsbury's success is dependent on each other, according to Stephen A. Smith.

Stephen A. said this about the duo Monday on First Take.

“So what I'm trying to say is you’re married at the hip. Now if he goes, you go. If he goes down, you go down. If he don't get a damn raise, or you don't get a huge contract, you don't get your contract. That's all I'm saying. I'm not challenging what you're saying in terms of its veracity. What I'm saying is, it's incredibly unfair. Kyler Murray is in his third year in the National Football League."

Smith continued to talk about Murray and Kingsbury's status.

"He's a miniature-sized quarterback 5’ 9”, 5’ 10” listed, okay? Gotta look over people to throw the damn football down the field. And he's still putting up better than decent numbers. And we talked about him? And we got Mr. Kliff Kingsbury off the hook? Or Steve Keim? Nah. Nah."

Smith is not wrong. The success of the Cardinals next year will depend on how these two work together.

Kyler Murray and Kliff Kingsbury need each other

When Kliff Kingsbury was brought in as the head coach, it wasn't because he had a great record in college. In fact, he had a losing record. The reason he was hired was because he was a quarterback whisperer.

Kingsbury had coached the likes of Patrick Mahomes, who was the quarterback when Kingsbury was head coach at Texas Tech, and Johnny Manziel, who won the Heisman while he was at Texas A&M and Kingsbury was the offensive coordinator.

Many thought this would be a marriage made in heaven between him and Murray, and to a certain extent it has been.

The Cardinals have gotten off to quick starts in the past two seasons only to fall apart in the end, which is why both may be in trouble this year.

Kingsbury's teams can't seem to get over the hump, and Murray can't seem to help them get over that hump. Something needs to change, and it looks like, if things don't change for the better this year, both Kingsbury and Murray will be out in Arizona.