The Arizona Cardinals offense flops despite a strong defensive outing

The Arizona Cardinals offense had opportunity after opportunity to defeat the Seattle Seahawks today, but an inept offense doomed the Redbirds.

Arizona Cardinals v Seattle Seahawks
Arizona Cardinals v Seattle Seahawks | Steph Chambers/GettyImages

The Arizona Cardinals defense surrendered just 318 yards and 203 passing yards in Sunday’s loss to the Seattle Seahawks. And better yet, they created not one, not two, but three turnovers. And yet, despite the defense’s best performance in a month, the Cardinals offense could not generate anything in the game’s final 30 minutes. 

You read that right: The Cardinals got shut out offensively in the second half again. Quarterback Joshua Dobbs finished the game 19 for 33, good for a meager 57.7 percent completion percentage, 146 yards, and a passer rating of 68.5. And in case you’re wondering, he finished the game with just 4.4 yards per passing attempt in what was yet another migraine-inducing performance. 

Joshua Dobbs, Arizona Cardinals offense struggles through an inept outing

If there was one bright spot in this game, it was running back Emari Demercado, who finished with 13 carries for 58 yards, and 4.5 yards per rush. Demercado also logged four catches for 17 yards on five targets, giving him 75 yards from scrimmage in this game. 

It will be just two weeks before quarterback Kyler Murray will likely return, but in the meantime, there is no way Joshua Dobbs can start another game this season. Sure, he got off to a hot start following the Washington game, but remember, opponents were still working to figure him out. 

Well, now that he’s been figured out and has proven to everyone how easy he is to stop, rookie Clayton Tune has got to get his chance in Weeks 8 and 9. Perhaps Tune didn’t give the Cards the best chance to win early in the season, and maybe that’s why he hasn’t seen any playing time apart from the one pass he threw today on a fake punt. 

But right now, teams know how to beat Dobbs, but they know little about Tune. Following Dobbs’ third straight abysmal performance, he can’t come back out and start next week’s game if the Cards are going to keep fans interested until Murray’s ultimate return. Here’s to Jonathan Gannon and Company giving the rook the nod next weekend. 

(Statistics provided by ESPN.com)

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