Three takeaways from the Arizona Cardinals week fourteen tilt
By Sion Fawkes
The Arizona Cardinals looked like the 6-3 squad we got to know in Sunday’s game against the New York Giants in a 26-7 beatdown of their former division rival.
And while the Arizona Cardinals NFC East revenge tour sits at a stellar 3-0, they must still contend with the Philadelphia Eagles and likely starter, Jalen Hurts in week fifteen. But until the Cardinals face the Eagles, what can they take away from today’s game?
As mentioned, the Red Birds treated us to a flashback to the first ten weeks of the season, specifically weeks five through ten, where the team went 4-1 before falling back to Earth in weeks eleven to thirteen.
The offense, while still flawed, looked somewhat like its old self with quarterback Kyler Murray contributing to the running game and opening things up for the passing attack downfield. Kenyan Drake contributed and broke several runs for double-digit gains despite a pair of fumbles.
The defense played lights out, something we haven’t seen for weeks. Now to be fair, the unit has dealt with its share of bumps and bruises all season, especially along the defensive line. But today, the unit held the Giants to just 159 total yards and apart from one quick scoring drive in the third quarter, controlled the game.
The Cardinals finally made consistent field goals. With kicker Zane Gonzalez ruled out for the game, Mike Nugent came in for the rescue. The 38-year-old converted on all four field goal attempts. Nugent had a kick fall short toward the end of the half, but a false start negated the attempt. Let’s look at each takeaway in the next three sections that the Cardinals can carry over into the final three games.