Sunday’s game looks like an easy one for Arizona Cardinals
By Jim Koch
The Arizona Cardinals should have no problem getting past a New York Jets squad that has yet to register a victory in 2020
Back in early 2019, the Arizona Cardinals began lining up candidates for their head-coaching position. Among those on the club’s list was Adam Gase, a hotshot offensive guru who had been recently fired by the Miami Dolphins. The Cards ended up settling on Kliff Kingsbury instead, and it appears that they may have dodged a huge bullet by not hiring Gase.
In his 20 contests thus far as New York’s head man, Gase has compiled a less than desirable 7-13 record. Sure, Kingsbury’s 7-12-1 mark with Arizona is only a tad better. Even so, the feeling this year in the desert seems much more positive than what is going on in the “Big Apple” with Gase at the present time.
The elephant in the room right now for the Jets is that they have yet to win a game this season. Last week, Gase’s group was defeated at home by a 1-3 Denver Broncos squad. What made the 37-28 loss even more hard to swallow was the fact that New York was beaten by Brett Rypien, a second-year quarterback who was making his first NFL start.
Through four weeks, the Jets defensive unit has given up an eye-popping 29.3 points per outing. If you think that’s bad, the team’s offense has been even worse. New York’s scoring “attack” has mustered just 59 points, the second-lowest total in the league.
To make things even more difficult, the Jets will be without their starting signal-caller when they face the Cardinals this weekend. Sam Darnold, the third-overall pick of the 2018 draft, is out with a sprained right shoulder he suffered against the Broncos. Joe Flacco, the former Baltimore Ravens starter and MVP of Super Bowl XLVII, will be making his first start since week eight of last season.
The clash between the Cards and the Jets was in danger of being delayed, after some unsettling news broke on Friday. New York sent their entire squad home after one of the players tested positive for COVID-19. It turned out that it was a “false” positive, so the meeting between the two clubs will go on as scheduled.
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To put it bluntly, the matchup with the Jets is one that Arizona simply cannot lose. Kyler Murray, DeAndre Hopkins and a defense that is due for a solid performance will make sure that they don’t. In the end, the Cardinals prevail by a score of 27-16, and take the cross-country flight home as happy campers.