If the Arizona Cardinals plan on winning in Week 15, they’re going to need to play their best game of the year. In case you missed it, their Week 15 opponent, the San Francisco 49ers, beat the Seattle Seahawks by 12 points, but the game wasn’t as close as the final score indicated.
While the Seahawks briefly held a 10-7 lead and clawed their way to within five points of the 49ers by the fourth quarter, the game itself was a near-flawless one for San Francisco. Quarterback Brock Purdy lit up the Seahawks defense for 368 yards, two touchdowns, one interception, and 13.6 yards per attempt, finishing the contest with a 122.1 quarterback rating.
Running back Christian McCaffrey rushed for 145 yards and 9.1 yards per carry while pass-catchers Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk, and George Kittle averaged 21.3, 21.0, and 25.3 yards per catch, respectively. Oh, and they combined for 16 receptions, so it wasn’t like they each hauled in a pair of deep passes.
Defensively, San Francisco notched two interceptions and four sacks, allowing just 324 total yards. By contrast, the 49ers offense accumulated 527 yards, so yeah, the Cardinals stagnant defense must bring its A-Game on December 17th.
Arizona Cardinals are facing a red-hot 49ers team in Week 15
Just how good have the 49ers been since they stumbled into their bye week after losing three straight? They have put up no less than 27 points in any of their previous five contests and have allowed no more than 19. But perhaps they overlook the Redbirds and fall into the same trap that the Dallas Cowboys and Pittsburgh Steelers fell into.
We also can’t deny that this is the perfect challenge for quarterback Kyler Murray to skyrocket his stock. If Murray keeps the Arizona Cardinals offense in the game, then the second half of his comeback will kick off on a high note even if he doesn’t lead the Cardinals to a major upset win.
(Statistics provided by ESPN.com)