The Arizona Cardinals defense is already on life support in October.
Sunday's 45-21 blowout loss at home to the Detroit Lions was the team's season high in points surrendered. They now have an active four-game losing streak during which they've also given up 30-plus points in each contest.
It felt inevitable that Arizona would keep that streak alive as they'd have no answer for this elite Lions offense. Still, we thought predicting the Lions scoring 40-plus was too harsh on the Cardinals. Turns out, we were being too generous.
This defense had no answer for running back Jahmyr Gibbs in particular. He had 25 carries for 151 yards and 2 touchdowns, along with 5 receptions for 56 yards. A total of 30 touches, 2 touchdowns, and 207 yards from scrimmage. (And somehow I still managed to lose my fantasy football matchup. Awesome.)
Yes, Gibbs and the Lions offense are capable of making several defenses around the league look incompetent. But this isn't a one-time thing for Arizona by any means. Their continued struggles on that side of the ball don't appear to have an end in sight. Ultimately, that's why it's in the Cardinals' best interest to move on from defensive coordinator Nick Rallis.
Cardinals should move on from Nick Rallis
We said Rallis should be on the hot seat after their Week 4 loss to the New York Giants in which they surrendered 36 points to flawed backup quarterback Jameis Winston. That seat should be almost melted into oblivion at this point. We're talking Drogon destroying the Iron Throne. That's how bad it's gotten in The Valley.
I'm not convinced any coordinator could truly transform this flawed Cardinals roster into a good defense. But given what we've seen, I'm also not convinced Rallis is the right man for the job.
As far as the Cardinals actually making a switch at defensive coordinator, well, it remains to be seen.
Mike LaFleur was recently asked about any potential changes to the coaching staff, though understandably didn't give much of an answer.
As their first-year head coach, even LaFleur himself isn't meeting expectations at this point in the season. However, he's at least shown he can provide enough value, particularly with his schemes on the offensive end, to justify a continued investment.
The Cardinals aren't expecting to win anytime soon and can afford to patiently bring along a young head coach like LaFleur to grow with this young roster. But when it comes to Rallis, unfortunately it's harder to make the case for him to stick around.
It's not getting easier for this defense anytime soon either, with a Week 6 matchup against one of the best teams in the league, their divisional rival Los Angeles Rams. It remains to be seen if this is truly a do-or-die game for Rallis or the extent to which he's currently on the hot seat. But the Cardinals can't be pleased with what they've seen from his group early on.
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