3 reasons why the Cardinals loss to Lions was not surprising

Arizona consistently plays down to their opponents

Look at the 2021 Cardinals: They struggled against the beat-up San Francisco 49ers early in the season. Two weeks before that game, they struggled against the Jacksonville Jaguars and found themselves in a 19 to 10 hole. The Panthers crushed them, and it had nothing to do with missing Kyler Murray and DeAndre Hopkins, considering they went 2-1 without them, with both wins coming against divisional opponents.

They did also did this in 2020 with Murray and Hopkins. We thought it was because Murray was not healthy. We now know that wasn’t the case considering his play in 2021 wane in the closing weeks of the season. This is the second time in as many seasons the Cardinals have let games slip against teams they should have put away by halftime. And they didn’t.

There are far more questions than answers at Cardinals headquarters. And if they don’t address this issue in the final three weeks of the season, owner Michael Bidwill seriously needs to consider making a change.

Especially if the Cardinals go out next week and make a man that threw for 57 yards against the Patriots look like an NFL MVP. Especially if they lose to a battered and beaten Seattle Seahawks team. And especially if they lose to a team whose head coach’s in-game decision-making is every bit as questionable as Kingsbury’s.