Cardinals fall short despite late-game rally by Kyler Murray

Kyler Murray came up just short in his attempt to lead the Arizona Cardinals to an eighth-straight victory in their Week 8 game against the Green Bay Packers.

The final quarter of an epic Thursday night showdown with the Green Bay Packers was winding down, and Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray had done everything he could.

A drive that had started at the Cards’ one-yard line had almost reached paydirt. But in the end, a miscommunication between Murray and veteran wideout A.J. Green resulted in an interception that thwarted a furious Arizona rally. The visiting Packers had prevailed by a score of 24-21, wiping the undefeated status away from the superstar signal-caller and his disappointed teammates.

It was an uneven performance by Murray and the “Air Raid” offense. For much of the evening, the 5-foot-10, 207-pound passer was hassled when he dropped back to throw. Even so, Murray had done enough to bring the Redbirds to within five yards of what would’ve been one of the squad’s most improbable victories in years.

Late-game heroics of Kyler Murray almost result in an Arizona Cardinals win over Green Bay Packers

Murray got things rolling midway through the opening quarter when he hooked up with DeAndre Hopkins for what appeared to be a 61-yard score. Unfortunately, the sensational wide receiver grabbed the facemask of Green Bay cornerback Eric Stokes while he was running down the sideline. The penalty moved the ball back to the Packers 21-yard line, but three plays later, Chase Edmonds made up for the mistake by finding the end zone from 11 yards out.

With 6:22 left in the third quarter, the Cardinals recorded their second touchdown of the contest. Running back James Conner rumbled in from two yards out, capping off a 12-play, 81-yard drive. A clutch pass from Murray to wideout Antoine Wesley on a fourth-down and four from the Arizona 47-yard line kept the scoring march alive.

The Cards scored again on their very next possession when Connor got in again from the nine-yard line. Murray completed five passes on the drive for 40 yards and added seven more yards on a scamper around the right end.

Statistically, Murray wasn’t at his finest against the Packers. The MVP candidate made good on 22 of his 33 attempts, for 274 yards and zero touchdowns. Murray also served up two picks, including the dagger by ex-Cardinal Rasul Douglas with just seconds remaining in the primetime matchup.

As Arizona found out, you can’t win them all. They also were reminded, however, that they are never out of any game that Murray competes in. The Green Bay loss will sting for a while, but it’s comforting to know that we have the never-say-die Murray running the offensive show for the Redbirds.