3 reasons the Arizona Cardinals will win in Week 5 (and 2 reasons they won’t)

The Arizona Cardinals, surprisingly, have a manageable opponent this week in what was supposed to be a mighty Cincinnati Bengals team.

Oct 1, 2023; Santa Clara, California, USA; Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Michael Wilson (14)
Oct 1, 2023; Santa Clara, California, USA; Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Michael Wilson (14) | Sergio Estrada-USA TODAY Sports
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Brandon Aiyuk, Jalen Thompson, Marco Wilson
Arizona Cardinals v San Francisco 49ers | Michael Owens/GettyImages

2 - Cardinals corners have noticeably struggled

Thank goodness cornerback Garrett Williams is at least practicing, because they will need him if cornerbacks Marco Wilson and Kei’Trel Clark continue to struggle. Wilson and Clark rank 88th and 90th, respectively out of 107 corners on PFF, making them arguably the league’s worst duo.

And while Clark’s grade of 50.5 is lower than Wilson’s (50.7), the latter is more likely to get relegated to backup status once Williams is ready. Wilson is a product of the old Steve Keim regime while Ossenfort brought in Clark, who is at least serviceable in run defense with a 64.1 grade coming into Week 5.

Unfortunately, Williams isn’t playing this week, as the injury report lists him as out, so Wilson and Clark must lead the charge vs. Ja’Marr Chase and the Bengals pass-catchers. If the Cards corners struggle again, then it will be a long outing for the Cardinals if Burrow finds a way to evade Gardeck and Company. 

(Statistics and grades provided by Pro-Football-Reference and PFF [subscription[

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