Questionable Cardinals secondary performed well
The surprise retirement of Malcolm Butler before the start of the 2021 season left a hole in the Cardinals’ secondary that caused concern for many.
While safety seems to be well rostered with Budda Baker and Jalen Thompson, the three starting cornerbacks for Arizona are now Byron Murphy Jr., Robert Alford, and rookie Marco Wilson.
The Titans have a talented receiving group with up-and-coming A.J. Brown, underrated Chester Rogers, and of course, the generational talent of Julio Jones. As talented as this group might be, Arizona’s cornerback room performed well in Week 1.
PFF awarded Murphy, the nominal No. 1 cornerback, a coverage grade of 78.5. Alford emerged with a 76.1 and Wilson with a 61.3. While Wilson’s grade seems low, he only allowed 46 yards and no touchdowns. However, he did allow Tannehill to complete 4-of-4 passes while targeting him, which is something he will need to work on.
Overall, Arizona’s secondary performed better than expected against what was the third-best offense in the NFL last season.