Colt McCoy regresses for Cardinals during Week 10 loss to Panthers

Arizona Cardinals quarterback Colt McCoy took a huge step backward during his team’s 34-10 loss to the Carolina Panthers.

Observers of the NFL were impressed last week when the Arizona Cardinals posted a convincing victory with a backup quarterback. Colt McCoy, a 12th-year journeyman, completed 84.6 percent of his passes in leading the Cards to an impressive 31-17 triumph over the San Francisco 49ers.

This past Sunday, Arizona tried their luck once again with the 35-year old McCoy. Unfortunately, the results weren’t nearly as favorable this time around for the signal-caller and his teammates.

McCoy was absolutely awful during the Cardinals’ 34-10 shellacking at the hands of the Carolina Panthers. The organization now needs Kyler Murray, the superstar passer who’s been nursing an injured ankle, to get back on the field as soon as possible.

Colt McCoy performed badly from start to finish for the Arizona Cardinals vs. the Carolina Panthers

On the Cards’ very first possession, McCoy fumbled the football away following a third-down sack. The defender who caused the turnover was none other than Haason Reddick, a former first-round draft pick of the Redbirds who signed with the Panthers last March. Five plays later, Cam Newton scored from two yards out, and Carolina had an extremely early 7-0 advantage.

Two possessions later, McCoy turned the ball over again when a pass intended for wide receiver Antoine Wesley was intercepted. The Texas native threw across his body on the play, a colossal mistake that a veteran passer is usually smart enough to avoid.

The only points generated by McCoy during the matchup with Carolina occurred five minutes into the third quarter. The 6-foot-1, 212-pounder completed two out of his three pass attempts for 40 yards on a scoring drive that concluded with a 47-yard field goal by Matt Prater.

McCoy left the contest with 5:27 left in the third quarter after he was sacked by Panthers linebacker Shaq Thompson. The former University of Texas product did not return, and it was later reported that he had suffered a strained pectoral muscle that shouldn’t hinder McCoy going forward.

Arizona fans are now hoping that Murray will return this week, thanks to the disappointing play of his stand-in versus Carolina. McCoy proved that he’s a capable contributor during the win over the 49ers, but his limitations were frighteningly obvious this past weekend.