Arizona Cardinals: The good, the bad, the ugly

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Sep 11, 2016; Glendale, AZ, USA; New England Patriots quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo (10) throws a pass in the first quarter against the Arizona Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /

Patriots Third Down Conversions

Everything was stacked against the Patriots offense. No Tom Brady, no Nate Solder, no Rob Gronkowski. The Cardinals were healthy.

Giving credit to the Patriots because they put together a great game plan, the Cardinals countered with a defensive plan that seemed to be out of sync all night.

The Patriots went 10-16 on third down conversions. You aren’t going to win many games in the NFL allowing that to happen. It doesn’t matter who the personnel is.

These players are professionals. A good offense and a smart coach will beat you almost every time if you go 10-16 on third downs.

Part of the issue, at least early on was the Cardinals going man to man coverage. Once they switched things up to zone, it worked for a little bit, but the Cardinals spent more time trying to figure the Patriots out than not.

This is an area that will have to improve vastly not just next week but going forward. By the opposing offense converting third downs, the defense is on the field that much longer. In the end, that could have been a cause of the time outs that needed to be used by the Cardinals defense in the fourth quarter.

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