Denver Broncos Do Their Thing, Beat Arizona Cardinals 41-20
By Scott Allen
Oct 5, 2014; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning (18) throws the ball during the first half against the Arizona Cardinals at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports
It was a very rough day for the Arizona Cardinals. They lost a football game to the Denver Broncos 41-20. They also lost several players to injury. Defensive end Calais Campbell left the game, as did tight end Troy Niklas, cornerback Patrick Peterson, and quarterback Drew Stanton. Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning was too much for the Cards defense.
The Cards were able to get a couple of picks off of Manning, including one by Campbell, but in the end Manning ruled the field. He threw his 500th touchdown pass and a few more after that. Cards cornerback Antonio Cromartie was picked on all day. He gave up way too many big plays to Broncos receivers.
Cards rookie quarterback Logan Thomas looked very uncomfortable in Stanton’s place. He did manage a huge 81-yard touchdown pass to Andre Ellington down the sideline. He really threaded the needle and I’m not sure if that was a great pass or maybe some blind luck? Whatever it was, it worked. He didn’t have much luck before or after that though.
When Stanton left to be evaluated for a concussion the Cards weren’t doing much at the time anyway. What really hurt the Cards the most were dropped passes. First, tight end Rob Housler dropped what would have been a touchdown catch. Receiver John Brown dropped one that would have been a first down grab. Same for receiver Larry Fitzgerald, although he did make a couple of big catches in the first quarter. Receiver Ted Ginn also dropped a sure first down in the fourth quarter.
Manning though just carved up the Cards. He went 31-47 for 479 yards with four touchdowns and the two picks. The Cards inability to continue drives after third down really hurt the defense and kept them on the field a long time in the second half. The Cards went 3-16 on third down. That’s after starting 3-4.
We’ll review this game for a day but then it’s on to the Washington Redskins next week. Forget about this one. The Cards are 3-1 and still in first place in the NFC West, no matter what happens with everyone else.