Arizona Cardinals vs Philadelphia Eagles: Week 15 MVP
By Reese Furlow
The Arizona Cardinals did not have the prettiest performance, but Kyler Murray put forth a huge effort in the 33-26 win over the Philadelphia Eagles earned him the week 15 game ball.
Kyler Murray completed 27 of his 36 passes with a career-high 406 yards to help lead the Arizona Cardinals to victory on Sunday afternoon. He also had three passing touchdowns and a rushing touchdown to go with it, making it three straight games with a passing touchdown.
It would be his ninth game with a rushing and passing touchdown, which is an NFL record for most games in a season by a quarterback. The previous quarterback with the record was Cam Newton in 2011.
Murray had his best performance in the first half, where he went 17-of-20 with three total touchdowns. He also had 13 straight completions, which was tied for a career high. The all-time record for the Cardinals is 15 straight completions.
He would disappear just before the end of the first half, however. He fumbled on his sixth possession of the series which would lead to a touchdown for the Eagles. In the second half, he threw an interception to a wide open defender.
Luckily for him, the Cardinals’ defense stepped up on a few drives that helped Murray find his favorite target, DeAndre Hopkins, for what would be the game-winning touchdown. Hopkins’ 20-yard touchdown catch would put him at nine catches for a season-high 169 yards, making it back-to-back games where he had over 100 yards receiving.
Speaking of the defense, Arizona’s defense showed signs of inconsistency, but held strong when it mattered the most. Despite Patrick Peterson’s pass interference calls on the same drive, Dre Kirkpatrick giving up big yards, and the defense missing tackles, it was the pressure on Jalen Hurts that won them the game.
Pressure from Dennis Gardeck – who had two sacks – Zach Allen, Haason Reddick and Jordan Hicks led to Hurts making mistakes throughout the game. Hurts still finished 24-of-44 for 338 yards and three touchdowns.
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Regardless of how ugly it was, the win helped the Cardinals’ playoff chances. All they need is a win against the San Francisco 49ers Saturday, December 26, to secure their spot.