Cardinals Playoff Chances Disappear With 23-16 Loss to Bengals
By Scott Allen
Well, at least they kept it interesting until the end. However it is the end of the winning streak and the run for the NFC Playoffs for the Arizona Cardinals as they lost 23-16 to the Cincinnati Bengals on Saturday afternoon. In what started as possible blowout turned into another thriller at the end. The Cardinals trailed 23-0 going into the fourth quarter and had two shots to tie the game in the final minutes. The Bengals tried really hard to keep the Cards in the game.
Bad things started early for the Cards though that put them in the quick hole.
- Quarterback John Skelton was intercepted on the first offensive drive, the first of three interceptions of the day
- The defense committed some bad penalties that kept Bengal drives alive
- Bengals wide receiver Jerome Simpson made the TD catch and run of the year, flipping into the end zone, making the Cards looking silly
- The Cards again couldn’t move the ball in the third and they were all but done
- Even in the comeback, it couldn’t be completed because Early Doucet couldn’t stay on his two fee in the end zone. Sad.
In spite of two Cedric Benson fumbles and a bad personal foul penalty that stopped the clock in the fourth quarter, the Bengals survived for one more week. Now the Cardinals are out of the playoff hunt and look forward to next season. Right now, they should play for .500. At 8-8, it is still a successful season considering how last season went and how this one started. At 8-8 after a 1-6 start would be something amazing expecially how they lost some of those early games. Oh, to just have those Ravens and Giants game back.