The Arizona Cardinals' offense received a huge boost when head coach Mike LaFleur made the decision to replace Jacoby Brissett with Gardner Minshew II at quarterback. It was just the move this offense needed to catalyze a 33-30 comeback win over the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday.
Compared to the struggling Brissett, Minshew was far more productive in the red zone and in unlocking Arizona's pass-catching weapons in general. One player who benefited most from LaFleur's decision was wide receiver Michael Wilson. He finally looked like a WR1 thanks to an improved connection with his new quarterback.
Michael Wilson had a better connection with Gardner Minshew II
Wilson finished with a game-high 111 receiving yards and 1 touchdown, hauling in 8 of 15 targets. That's also a season high for Wilson, who eclipsed the century mark for the first time all season in this contest.
Wilson had three games last season where he exceeded 100 yards receiving. He hasn't been quite the same level of production as the 1,000-yard receiver Arizona saw then. Some of that is due to the departure of Marvin Harrison Jr., as defenses have been paying more attention to Wilson given the Cardinals' depleted wide receiver room. Hopefully, the switch from Brissett to Minshew is here to stay, as it helped unlock that version of Wilson again.
That should be a huge factor in the decision whether to start Brissett or Minshew going forward. One reason why they have these veteran stopgaps in the first place is to unlock these up-and-coming playmakers. The Cardinals made it clear that Wilson, 26, is part of that young core when they inked him to a three-year, $75 million contract extension over the offseason.
He's become an even more important part of this offense after the Harrison trade and injuries to players like Jalen Brooks. Even WR2 Kendrick Bourne exited the contest against the Cowboys with a right high-ankle sprain.
Given how much of a priority Wilson is now in this offense, the drastic upgrade in his connection with Minshew compared to Brissett is another reason LaFleur should ride with Minshew as the team's starter going forward. Wilson can then emerge as that pass-catching weapon alongside tight end Trey McBride, especially with rookie running back Jeremiyah Love struggling relative to draft expectations so far.
The Cardinals have one of the worst defenses in the league, and as Sunday's win over the Cowboys showed, they'll have to pull off these types of upsets in shootouts more often than not. Minshew Mania already looked like the better gunslinger to unlock this offense than the often overly conservative Brissett. He isn't afraid to put the ball in dangerous situations to let his players make a play.
Maybe that was exactly the switch Marvin Harrison Jr. needed to thrive in Arizona as well, though it's too little too late after sending him to the Houston Texans before seeing whether he'd benefit from a change at quarterback first.
We're already seeing the importance of a connection when it comes to a pass-catcher's production, as it's not a coincidence Wilson had his best game of the season the one time LaFleur turns to Minshew. Some of that production can also be attributed to a Cowboys defense that somehow might be even worse than the Cardinals'. But much of that also came from Minshew's confidence and his teammates' trust, with a clearly established connection with Wilson in particular.
Minshew made a compelling case to remain this team's starter. And should LaFleur make that decision, Sunday's win over Dallas showed Wilson could be the biggest winner going forward.
Wilson later revealed he suffered two broken ribs in the win. Although he's playing through "a lot" of pain right now, he said he'll try to play even if he's not at 100 percent.
"This organization's paying me a lot of money," Wilson said. "So if I can muster up the strength to go play, even at 60 percent, I'm going to."
That's optimistic for his availability going forward, which is good news for the Cardinals offense in general, especially if the plan is to start Minshew.
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