Arizona Cardinals never get started, blasted by Buffalo
By Scott Allen
The Arizona Cardinals slow start on Sunday never got off the ground, worst loss in Bruce Arians era
The Arizona Cardinals are not a Super Bowl contender. They are not even an NFC West contender. After a lopsided 33-18 loss by the Cardinals to the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, there are more questions than answers.
For the third straight week, the Cardinals got off to a slow start. Most Cardinals fans felt like they would get it going. We are still waiting.
The Cardinals who didn’t turn the ball over at all over the first two weeks, gave the ball away five times in the loss to the Bills. It was ugly from start to finish.
Nothing worked. The Cardinals defense allowed Bills running back LeSean McCoy run all over the field. The Bills rushed the ball for 211 yards.
The Cardinals offense looked lethargic as well. Quarterback Carson Palmer, who wasn’t sharp at all, threw four interceptions, all in the fourth quarter. He went 26-50 264 yards, no touchdowns.
The special teams was bad, again. A botched 31-yard field goal attempt that went over Drew Butler’s head was returned by the Bills for a touchdown. That was a 10-point swing. Mind you that culminated an over seven-minute drive that quite frankly needed to result in a touchdown by the Cardinals at that point.
Now the Cardinals must re-group. There will be a lot of talk about what’s wrong with all three phases of the game. Each phase has its issues.
The Cards were bullied on both sides of the ball. They looked very dis-interested in the first half. That in itself is an issue that needs correcting before anything else.
Most expected a second-half adjustment. It never happened. The Cardinals continued to make mistakes everywhere. It is going to be a big re-evaluation week for the Cardinals.
By far this is the worst the Cardinals played in the Bruce Arians era in Arizona. If the Monday after the New England Patriots game was the “sky is falling Monday” as general manager Steve Keim said, then tomorrow is “your job is in jeopardy Monday”. That goes for players and coaches.
Now it’s back home for the Cardinals next week against the Los Angeles Rams. The Rams defeated the Cardinals at home on the same weekend in 2015. Things need to change fast.